fei;:; 


y; 


OCT  4    1924 

Division's  4^  ' 
Section  ,S -5  8 


THE  BIBLE  FOR  HOME  AND  SCHOOL 
SHAILER  MATHEWS,  General  Editor 

DEAK  OP  THE  DIVI^fITY  SCHOOL,  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CHICAGO 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


THE  BIBLE  FOR  HOME  AND  SCHOOL 

SHAILER  MATHEWS,  General  Editor 

GENESIS 

By  Professor  H.  G.  Mitchell 

DEUTERONOMY 

By  Professor  W.  G.  Jordan 

JUDGES: 

By  Professor  Edward  L.  Curtis 

I  SAMUEL 

By  Professor  L.  W.  Batten 

JOB 

By  Professor  George  A.  Barton 

ISAIAH 

By  Professor  John  E.  McFadyen 

AMOS,  HOSEA  AND  MICAH 

By  Professor  J.  M.  Powis  Smith 

MATTHEW 

By  Professor  A.  T.  Robertson 

MARK 

By  Professor  M.  W.  Jacobus 

ACTS 

By  Professor  George  H.  Gilbert 

GALATIANS 

By  Professor  B.  W.  Bacon 

ROMANS 

By  Professor  E.  I.  Bosworth 

epheslyns  and  COLOSSIANS 

By  Reverend  Gross  Alexander 

HEBREWS 

By  Professor  E.  J.  Goodspeed 

VOLUMES  IN  PREPARATION 

PSALMS 

By  Reverend  J.  P.  Peters 

JOHN 

By  Professor  Shailer  Mathews 

I  AND  II  CORINTHIANS 

By  Professor  J.  S.  Riggs 

/ 

THE  BIBLE  FOR  HOME  AND  SCHOOL 


A  COMMENTA 


ON  THE 


FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


BY 

LORING  W.  BATTEN,  Ph.D. 

PROFESSOR  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT  IN  THE  GENERAL  THEOLOGICAL 
SEMINARY,  NEW  YORK 


Nrm  fork 

THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

1919 

All  rights  reserved 


Copyright,  igig 
By  the  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.    Published  November,  1919. 


GENERAL   INTRODUCTION 

The  Bible  for  Home  and  School  is  intended  to  place 
the  results  of  the  best  modern  biblical  scholarship  at  the 
disposal  of  the  general  reader.  It  does  not  seek  to  dupli- 
cate other  commentaries  to  which  the  student  must  turn. 
Its  chief  characteristics  are  (a)  its  rigid  exclusion  of  all 
processes,  both  critical  and  exegetical,  from  its  notes; 
(b)  its  presupposition  and  its  use  of  the  assured  results 
of  historical  investigation  and  criticism  wherever  such 
results  throw  light  on  the  bibhcal  text;  (c)  its  running 
analysis  both  in  text  and  comment;  {d)  its  brief  explana- 
tory notes  adapted  to  the  rapid  reader;  (e)  its  thorough 
but  brief  Introductions,  (/)  its  use  of  the  Revised  Version 
of  1 88 1,  supplemented  with  all  important  renderings  in 
other  versions. 

BibUcal  science  has  progressed  rapidly  during  the  past 
few  years,  but  the  reader  still  lacks  a  brief,  comprehensive 
commentary  that  shall  extend  to  him  in  usable  form  mate- 
rial now  at  the  disposition  of  the  student.  It  is  hoped 
that  in  this  series  the  needs  of  intelligent  Sunday  School 
teachers  have  been  met,  as  well  as  those  of  clergymen 
and  lay  readers,  and  that  in  scope,  purpose,  and  loyalty 
to  the  Scriptures  as  a  foundation  of  Christian  thought  and 
life,  its  volumes  will  stimulate  the  intelUgent  use  of  the 
Bible  in  the  home  and  the  school. 

Shailer  Mathews. 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


INTRODUCTION 

I.    The  Character  and  Purpose  of  First  Samuel 

In  the  Hebrew  canon  i  Samuel  is  grouped  with  Joshua, 
Judges,  2  Samuel  and  i  and  2  Kings,  and  to  this  collection 
of  narrative  literature  is  given  the  descriptive  title 
*' Former  Prophets."  They  are  not  classified  as  historical 
treatises,  but  as  prophetic  teaching. .  They  were  compiled 
not  as  an  accurate  record  of  the  nation's  history,  but  as 
stories  meant  to  teach  great  moral  lessons.  The  com- 
piler of  Kings  shows  at  times  an  impatience  with  what 
is  merely  historical,  and  so  frequently  refers  the  reader 
to  the  government  annals  for  a  record  of  facts. 

The  natural  consequence  is  that  the  compilers  were  not 
critically  discriminating  in  the  use  of  their  material.  If  a 
story  contained  the  lesson  they  wanted  to  set  forth,  it 
was  of  small  moment  if  the  story  contained  an  admixture 
of  legend.  If  the  editor  had  been  cautioned  that  the  tale 
of  Samuel's  smashing  victory  over  the  Philistines  (i  Sam. 
7)  was  not  historically  accurate,  it  would  have  made  no 
difference  to  him,  for  the  tale  is  made  to  show  that  Israel 
is  strong  when  they  are  single  in  their  devotion  to  their 
God,  and  that  principle  is  sound  even  if  Samuel  never 
directly  lifted  a  hand  against  the  oppressors  of  his  people. 
Naturally  it  is  highly  important  for  the  student  of  these 
ancient  books  to  read  them  from  the  point  of  view  of 
those  who  produced  them.  And  if  he  uses  them  as  his- 
torical sources  he  must  keep  in  mind  the  compiler 's  point 
of  view. 

The  division  between  i  and  2  Samuel  is  modern,  and 
purely  artificial.  Hardly  less  artificial  is  the  division 
between  Samuel  and  Kings,  for  the  latter  books  continue 


INTRODUCTION 


the  story  where  it  is  left  off  in  2  Sam.  20.  The  most 
logical  scheme  is  therefore  that  of  the  Greek  texts  in  which 
these  four  books  are  grouped  together  as  i,  2,  3,  and  4 
Kings. 

I  Samuel  covers  a  period  of  transition  in  the  condi- 
tions of  Israel.  At  the  beginning  the  people  have  no  central 
authority,  the  same  state  as  revealed  in  the  book  of 
Judges.  Every  tribe  and  almost  every  clan  did  what 
was  right  in  its  own  eyes.  At  the  end  David  is  just  ready 
to  be  crowned  in  Hebron  as  king  of  Judah,  and  to  push 
his  authority  until  it  covers  the  whole  nation,  and  to 
bring  the  state  to  the  greatest  strength  it  reached  in  its 
entire  history. 

The  period  covered  is  not  much  longer  than  the  life  of 
a  single  person.  The  book  begins  with  the  birth  of  a 
great  seer,  and  it  is  apparent  that  Samuel  had  not  long 
been  dead  when  Saul  falls  on  Mount  Gilboa. 

It  is  noticeable  that  the  scholars  who  have  written 
works  on  i  Samuel  do  not  agree  in  the  division  of  the  book 
into  appropriate  sections.  The  fact  is  that  such  division 
is  diflScult,  for  there  are  few  natural  points  of  cleavage. 
This  difficulty  is  due  partly  to  the  overlapping  of  the 
prominent  characters  of  the  book,  and  partly  to  the  con- 
struction. The  compiler  did  not  arrange  his  material  in  a 
systematic  and  logical  order. 

It  is  possible,  however,  to  group  the  whole  material 
around  one  general  subject,  the  early  efforts  to  throw  off 
the  Philistine  yoke.  The  Philistines  had  migrated  from 
the  island  of  Crete  and  had  gained  possession  of  the  im- 
portant and  fertile  coast  plain  of  Palestine.  They  were 
an  aggressive  and  warlike  people,  and  had  pushed  their 
boundaries  eastward  until  they  dominated  the  tribe  of 
Judah,  and  the  hills  of  Ephraim  where  the  great  tribe  of 
Joseph  had  settled.  The  book  of  i  Samuel  tells  the  stories 
of  the  first  known  efforts  of  the  Israelites  to  gain  their 
freedom,  efforts  which  at  times  won  a  measure  of  success, 
but  which  finally  ended  in  the  disaster  of  Gilboa. 


INTRODUCTION 


There  are  four  principal  characters  which  stand  out 
in  this  book.  With  the  exception  of  cc.  4-6  practically 
all  of  the  stories  are  more  or  less  the  personal  history  of 
Eli,  Samuel,  Saul  and  David.  Two  of  these  belong  to  the 
religious  order,  and  two  to  the  political.  Further,  the 
compiler  of  the  book  discloses  a  marked  antipathy  to 
two  of  these  figures,  one  religious  and  the  other  political, 
EH  and  Saul;  and  he  betrays  an  equally  strong  preposses- 
sion in  favor  of  the  other  two,  Samuel  and  David,  again 
one  prominent  in  the  religious  and  the  other  in  the  polit- 
ical sphere. 

The  ground  of  the  animus  against  Eli  is  peculiar. 
In  the  original  sources  he  appears  as  an  honorable  and 
upright  priest;  and  in  the  later  accretions  even  the  only 
thing  alleged  against  him  is  his  failure  to  reprove  his  sons 
when  they  did  wrong,  and  even  this  charge  is  contradicted 
by  evidence  in  the  book.  The  fact  was  that  the  house  of 
EU  was  nearly  wiped  out  as  the  result  of  a  disastrous 
battle  with  the  Philistines.  According  to  the  theology  of 
the  Jews  such  a  calamity  must  be  the  result  of  sin,  for 
God  would  not  permit  such  a  blow  to  fall  upon  the  right- 
eous. ^  Eli  and  his  house  are  marked  as  the  objects  of  a 
terrible  divine  visitation,  and  therein  is  evidence  of  wrong- 
doing. 

In  the  case  of  Saul  the  compiler  looks  at  the  matter 
from  a  different  angle  than  we  should  take.  The  fault 
in  Saul  lies  in  his  disobedience  of  Samuel's  commands, 
13  :  7b-i5a,  15,  although  illegal  sacrificing  may  be  an  ele- 
ment of  wrong  in  the  former  case.  It  should  be  noted 
that  the  passages  are  parallel  rather  than  complementary. 
Because  he  disobeyed  Jahveh's  prophet,  his  rejection  from 
the  throne  is  pronounced. 

There  is  abundant  cause  for  discrediting  Saul's  rule. 
Indeed  it  is  difficult  to  see  any  great  good  in  his  reign 
save  the  rescue  of  Jabesh-gilead  (c.  11).  Though  Saul 
was  made  king  to  deliver  Israel  from  the  oppressor,  it  was 

1  See  my  Good  and  Evil.    L.  W.  B. 


INTRODUCTION 


Jonathan,  and  not  Saul,  who  first  lifted  a  hand  against 
the  Philistines.  In  that  action  we  find  Saul  too  impatient 
to  await  the  answer  of  Jahveh,  and  then  making  an  oath 
which  Jonathan  denounced  as  foolish  because  it  made  the 
pursuit  of  the  foe  ineffective.  Saul  would  have  slain  the 
hero  of  the  battle  save  for  the  intervention  of  the  army. 

Nearly  all  the  rest  of  his  history  is  an  account  of  his 
many  efforts  to  kill  David,  who  was  one  of  his  most  loyal 
officers.  Saul  tried  to  bring  about  his  death  by  treachery, 
by  assassination,  and  even  employed  his  whole  army  in 
mad  pursuit  of  one  of  whom  he  was  jealous  and  afraid. 
He  mercilessly  ordered  the  slaughter  of  a  whole  company 
of  priests  because  he  was  convinced  that  one  of  them  had 
aided  and  abetted  the  fugitive.  It  is  true  that  most  of 
the  evils  of  Saul's  reign  may  have  been  due  to  mental 
disease,  but  whatever  be  the  cause  of  his  errors,  there  are 
many  counts  in  the  indictment  against  the  Benjamite 
house. 

II.  The  Composition  of  First  Samuel 

More  important  than  the  vain  attempt  to  divide  the 
book  into  logical  sections  is  the  resolution  of  the  present 
composite  text  into  its  original  sources,  and  here  again  we 
are  confronted  in  certain  parts  with  a  problem  of  consider- 
able difficulty.  The  book  has  been  edited  by  more  than 
one  hand,  and  as  we  shall  see,  existed  once  in  more  than 
one  edition.  In  its  substantially  original  form  the  book 
was  still  a  compilation,  and  it  is  necessary  for  the  careful 
student  who  would  use  the  book  as  a  historical  source  to 
differentiate  between  the  sources.  To  begin  with  the  sim- 
plest problem,  it  is  quite  easy  to  detect  two  distinct  sources, 
and  in  a  measure  to  apportion  their  limits.  Before  under- 
taking this  task,  and  partly  to  justify  results  different 
from  others,  it  is  necessary  to  consider  for  a  moment  an 
element  upon  which  insufficient  stress  has  been  laid. 

If  we  may  for  convenience  apply  the  term  to  the  pro- 
phetic books  in  which  alone  we  find  the  material,  early 


INTRODUCTION 


Hebrew  history  is  written  from  two  radically  different 
points  of  view,  which  may  be  called  the  national  and  the 
tribal.  In  the  time  of  David,  and  under  the  influence  of 
his  great  personaUty,  the  tribes  of  Israel  were  welded  into 
a  nation.  Now  many  writers  of  much  later  ages  seem 
to  have  assumed  that  Israel  had  always  been  a  nation, 
compact  and  homogeneous.  They  describe  all  the  early 
actions  as  if  they  were  national.  A  good  illustration  is 
found  in  Josh.  1-12,  where  the  conquest  of  Canaan  is 
pictured  as  the  accomplishment  of  all  the  tribes  working 
together  under  a  single  leader  of  unquestioned  authority. 
We  may  denote  this  writer,  or  this  school  of  writers,  by 
the  self-explanatory  symbol  N. 

There  were  other  writers  who  perceived  that  most  of 
the  known  events  in  the  early  history  were  the  work  of 
the  various  separate  tribes,  or  even  of  parts  of  the  tribes. 
The  exploits  in  the  book  of  Judges  were  movements  of 
clans,  or  tribes,  or  a  temporary  confederation  of  tribes. 
Fragments  in  Josh.  13  ff.  show  that  some  of  the  work  of  the 
conquest  was  tribal.  Similarly  we  may  apply  the  symbol 
T  to  writings  revealing  this  point  of  view.  It  is  further 
to  be  noted  that  T  gives  the  earlier  and  more  correct  ac- 
count of  the  history,  while  N  is  later  and  tends  to  idealiza- 
tion of  the  early  events. 

Both  points  of  view  appear  in  i  Samuel,  and  perhaps 
an  analysis  on  that  principle  is  the  most  helpful.  It  is 
impossible  to  say  who  wrote  any  section  of  the  book  or 
when  the  various  parts  were  written.  But  we  can  classify 
a  part  of  the  material  accurately  according  to  the  point 
of  view. 

It  is  best  to  take  first  that  part  in  which  the  task  is 
simplest,  and  the  results  surest.  Differing  somewhat  from 
the  usual  treatment  which  makes  the  end  of  ch.  15  a  sharp 
divisional  point,  I  prefer  to  discuss  chs.  1-16  together.  On 
the  ground  of  reasons  assigned  in  the  introduction  to  the 
sections,  under  T  (= Smith's  SI.)  I  group  chs.  1-6  (except 
2  :  17-36;  3  :  12-21);  9  :  i-io  :  16, 11, 13  (except  vs.  7b-i5a) 

5 


INTRODUCTION 


14,  15  :  35-16.  The  rest  belongs  to  N  (= Smith's  Sm.)  i.  e, 
the  three  large  sections  (i)  chs.  7:  (2)  8,  10:17-27;  12; 
(3)  15;  and  the  small  pieces  2  :  17-36;  3  :  12-21 ;  13  :  7b-i5a. 

These  conclusions  differ  from  those  reached  by  others 
in  regard  to  two  passages,  chs.  1-3  and  16  : 1-13,  which  are 
usually  classified  with  the  later  source.  This  verdict  seems 
to  me  unsound,  for  the  pieces  have  all  the  characteristics  of 
the  primitive  stories,  and  the  national  point  of  view  is  not 
apparent  at  all.  Critics  have  failed  to  note  that  with  the 
exception  of  two  interpolated  passages  chs.  1-3  makes  an 
excellent  introduction  to  Samuel  the  seer  of  Ephraim, 
whose  one  great  passion  was  the  deliverance  of  his  country 
from  the  heavy  yoke  of  the  Philistines.  And  still  more 
they  have  failed  to  see  that  the  Samuel  of  16  : 1-13  is  this 
same  seer,  consumed  by  the  same  passion,  and  altogether 
different  from  the  Samuel  as  seen  in  the  sources  marked  N. 

In  chs.  17-21  we  find  the  greatest  difficulties.  These 
chapters  in  general  describe  Saul's  persecution  of  David 
resulting  in  his  flight  from  the  court.  The  material  is 
usually  divided  into  two  strands;  thus  Smith  assigns 
18  : 6-13,  2o-29a;  19  :  11-17;  21  :  2-10;  to  one  source,  and 
17  : 1-18  :  5  114-19;  18  130-19  :  10;  19  :  18-24;  21  :  11-16,  to 
another,  while  ch.  20  he  looks  upon  as  coming  from  a  third 
source.  His  conclusions  represent  the  general  judgment 
of  scholars  of  the  present  time. 

It  is  a  noteworthy  fact  that  we  do  not  find  two  different 
points  of  view  in  this  section,  save  in  minor  passages,  nor 
do  we  discover  the  evident  marks  of  a  late  age  except  in 
the  same  small  sections.  The  question  therefore  arises 
whether  we  are  justified  in  the  radical  treatment  usually 
given  to  the  section.  My  study  has  convinced  me  that 
with  certain  small  exceptions  the  whole  passage  belongs  to 
the  early  David  stories. 

In  17  : 1-18  : 5  we  must  take  the  original  text  as  shown 
in  G.,  i.e.,  omitting  17  :  12-31;  17:55-18  15,  and  with  other 
minor  changes  explained  in  the  commentary,  and  we  have 
the  necessary  connecting  Hnks  between  ch.  16  and  18  : 6  ff. 


INTRODUCTION 


David  as  Saul's  armor  bearer  accepts  the  challenge  of  a 
mighty  Philistine  warrior,  and  saves  Israel.  In  ch.  i8  we 
must  assign  vs.  8-10  to  a  secondary  source,  and  connect 
vs.  1 7-19  with  17:12-31.  Then  we  have  a  consistent  story 
of  Saul's  jealousy,  his  reduction  of  David  from  armor 
bearer  to  a  captaincy,  and  his  futile  attempt  to  entrap  him 
with  his  daughter. 

In  19  : 1-17  there  is  no  difficulty.  Jonathan  successfully 
intervenes  for  David,  but  when  he  again  appears  before 
Saul,  the  latter 's  passions  are  rekindled,  and  he  attempts 
David's  life.  David  dodges  the  spear  and  retires  to  his 
own  house.  Saul's  plan  to  bring  him  back  to  his  death 
is  frustrated  by  the  clever  and  faithful  Michal,  and  David 
escapes.  But  where  does  he  go?  According  to  the  present 
arrangement  of  the  text  he  goes  to  Samuel  at  Ramah, 
and  is  protected  by  the  prophet. 

Now  this  section  19  :  18-24  is  confidently  assigned  to  a 
late  source.  But  Samuel  is  not  necessarily  a  national 
figure  here,  and  the  prophetic  frenzy  is  characteristic  of 
the  early  prophetic  story,  cf.  ch.  10.  The  section  may 
easily  be  retained,  but  it  must  be  transposed,  and  put 
after  Jonathan's  test  in  ch.  20. 

When  David  fled  from  his  house  he  sought  Jonathan, 
and  I  see  no  reason  why  that  is  out  of  the  range  of  prob- 
ability. David  was  no  coward  and  he  was  resourceful, 
and  he  can  have  a  secret  interview  with  his  friend  without 
serious  danger.  He  would  hardly  like  to  flee  the  court 
permanently  without  the  knowledge  and  approval  of  his 
princely  associate.  David  assures  Jonathan  that  his 
danger  is  very  great,  but  Jonathan  is  doubtful  because 
Saul  has  said  nothing  about  the  matter  to  him  since  he 
had  effected  an  adjustment,  19  : 1-7.  The  chief  difficulty 
is  the  supposition  that  Saul  would  expect  David  to  take 
his  place  at  the  feast  as  formerly.  But  we  must  remember 
that  the  king  was  deranged  and  it  is  evident  that  David 
has  no  intention  of  exposing  himself  to  danger  unless  he 
is  assured  that  Saul's  attempts  on  his  life  were  due  to 

7 


INTRODUCTION 


periodic  mental  attacks.     For  we  must  remember  that 
the  attempted  assault  was  made  when  the  king  was  mad. 

After  the  test  it  was  clear  that  David  could  not  return 
to  court.  There  is  no  reason  why  he  should  not  seek 
counsel  of  the  seer  who  had  started  him  on  his  career. 
After  Saul's  discovery  of  his  hiding  place  and  repeated 
attempts  to  seize  him,  he  naturally  abandons  Ramah, 
and  in  the  course  of  his  flight  stops  at  the  temple  at  Nob. 

The  appearance  at  Gath  21  :  10-15  is  probably  from  a 
secondary  source,  but  it  is  by  no  means  a  parallel  to  ch.  27. 
For  the  question  of  the  Gittite  king  *'  wherefore  have  ye 
brought  him  to  me,"  shows  that  the  Philistines  had  nm 
across  David,  arrested  him,  and  brought  him  to  Achish 
under  the  suspicion  that  he  was  David  their  inveterate 
foe.  The  incident  is  improbable  in  view  of  the  fact  that 
later  David  was  accepted  at  the  court  without  question, 
and  the  reference  to  David  as  king  indicates  a  late  hand. 

In  chs.  22-31  there  are  three  main  subjects,  David  as 
chief  of  a  band  of  outlaws,  22  : 1-5,  20-23;  25,  27  : 1-28  : 
2;  29,  30,  Saul's  pursuit  of  David,  23  :  15-24,  26,  and  Saul's 
last  battle  with  the  Philistines,  28  13-25;  31.  There  is 
besides  the  story  of  the  murder  of  the  priests  of  Nob  22  : 
6-19. 

The  chief  difficulty  in  this  section  is  found  in  23  :  15-24, 
26  and  28  : 3-25.  Chs.  24  and  26  tell  a  precisely  similar 
story  and  are  regarded  as  duplicate  versions  of  the  same 
event,  ch.  26  being  judged  the  more  original.  As  a  matter 
of  fact  it  is  doubtful  if  either  version  contains  authentic 
history.  In  all  the  other  stories,  the  abandonment  of 
Keilah,  the  desperate  pursuit  in  23  :  15  ff.,  and  the  flight 
to  a  foreign  country,  it  appears  that  David  really  seeks  to 
keep  well  out  of  Saul's  way,  and  with  his  four  hundred 
against  the  king's  three  thousand,  he  might  well  avoid  an 
issue  at  arms.  Both  the  stories  in  chs.  24  and  26  seem  to 
have  the  marks  of  late  tales. 

On  the  other  hand,  I  do  not  feel  the  usual  objection  to 
ch.  28.    It  has  evidently  been  worked  over  by  a  late  hand, 

8 


INTRODUCTION 


putting  a  too  specific  prediction  into  the  mouth  of  an 
ancient  spiritualist,  but  the  main  part  of  the  story  appears 
to  possess  primitive  characteristics.  With  the  exception 
therefore  of  chs.  24  and  26,  and  a  few  small  sections  as 
already  pointed  out,  and  some  redactional  modifications, 
chs.  17-31  may  be  regarded  as  a  good  and  early  source 
for  the  history  of  Saul's  closing  days  and  of  David's  early 
achievements. 

There  is  one  peculiarly  difficult  historical  problem  con- 
fronting the  student  of  this  book.  Saul  charges  David  with 
attempts  upon  the  throne,  and  on  this  ground  tries  in 
vain  to  accomplish  his  destruction;  he  accuses  Jonathan 
of  connivance  in  David's  treachery.  Was  this  the  hal- 
lucination of  a  disordered  brain,  or  was  there  some  basis 
for  Saul's  suspicion? 

It  is  clear  that  David  disavows  any  hostility  towards 
Saul,  and  Jonathan  likewise  persists  that  there  is  no  ground 
whatever  for  his  father's  charges.  On  the  other  hand,  there 
are  many  references  to  David's  coming  power.  Samuel 
declares  that  Jahveh  will  give  the  kingdom  to  Saul's  neigh- 
bor, 13  :  14;  15  :  28,  he  anoints  David  as  Saul's  successor, 
16  : 1-13,  and  is  brought  from  the  grave  to  reiterate  his 
prophecy,  28  :  17.  Jonathan  clearly  expresses  his  convic- 
tion that  David  is  to  become  king,  20  :  146 ;  23  :  17.  Abigail 
knows  of  the  purpose  of  Jahveh  to  put  David  on  the  throne, 
25  :  30  f.;  the  elders  of  Israel  have  the  same  idea,  2  Sam. 
5:2;  and  even  the  Philistines  recognize  him  as  a  king, 
21  : 1 1 .  Finally  Saul  himself  recognizes  David  as  a  destined 
king,  and  exacts  an  oath  that  he  will  not  exterminate  the 
house  of  Saul,  24  :  20  ff.  The  difficulty  lies  in  the  fact  that 
nearly  all  of  these  passages  are  regarded  as  coming  from 
a  late  source,  in  which  David's  course  in  seizing  the  throne 
is  justified  as  having  divine  sanction. 

To  start  upon  sure  ground,  we  know  that  the  moment 
David  learned  of  the  death  of  Saul,  he  went  to  Hebron 
and  was  crowned  King  of  Judah,  2  Sam.  2  :  1-4,  and  that 
he  at  once  set  about  the  overthrow  of  Saul's  successor. 


INTRODUCTION 


Coming  backward  we  find  that  he  had  paved  the  way  for 
the  Judean  crown  by  sending  presents  to  various  Judean 
towns  while  Saul  yet  Uved,  30  :  26  ff.  He  had  levied  trib- 
ute upon  the  shepherd  clans  in  the  Judean  wilderness 
as  a  quid  pro  quo  for  the  protection  he  afforded  them, 
25  :  He  had  taken  it  upon  himself  to  drive  away  the 
PhiUstines  who  were  attacking  a  Judean  town,  23  :  1-15. 
He  had  at  the  very  first  tried  to  maintain  himself  in  a 
stronghold,  22  :  1-5.  It  appears  that  David  was  aiming 
to  be  the  head  of  the  scattered  and  heterogeneous  clans 
which  in  those  early  days  made  up  the  tribe  of  Judah, 
but  was  thwarted  by  the  persistent  attacks  of  Saul.  So 
far  we  derive  our  conclusions  from  reliable  sources.  Can 
we  go  any  further? 

In  an  early  source  Saul  makes  the  charge  that  David 
and  Jonathan  have  made  a  league  against  him,  and  that 
his  son  has  stirred  up  David  to  oppose  the  king,  22:8. 
In  conformity  with  this  view,  at  their  last  reported  inter- 
view, Jonathan  says  to  David  that  the  latter  will  be  king 
of  Israel,  and  the  former  the  king's  prime  minister,  23  :  17. 
The  latter  passage  is  regarded  as  late  and  spurious,  chiefly 
I  fancy,  because  of  its  contents.  On  the  contrary  it  seems 
to  be  just  what  we  need  to  complete  our  account.  The 
story  of  David  may  very  probably  be  this: 

Samuel  had  anointed  him  in  the  expectation  that  once 
started  on  a  career  under  the  influence  of  the  spirit  of 
God  he  would  win  through  to  the  throne,  which  at  that 
period  would  naturally  fall  to  the  best  man.  Jonathan 
became  deeply  attached  to  David,  and  when  the  latter 
was  driven  from  Saul's  court  there  was  a  league  between 
them.  David  was  to  undertake  to  consolidate  and  govern 
the  scattered  clans  of  Judah,  which  were  quite  outside  of 
Saul's  jurisdiction,  and  after  Saul's  death,  David  was  to 
receive  the  crown  of  Judah,  and  Jonathan,  if  still  alive, 
was  to  be  his  chief  officer;  if  Jonathan  fell  with  or  before 
his  father,  David  was  to  protect  his  seed.  David's  course 
was  perfectly  consistent  with  that  program.    If  this  con- 


INTRODUCTION 


elusion  be  sound,  Saul's  suspicions  were  at  the  first  base- 
less, and  his  own  jealousy  of  his  servant's  superior  prowess, 
drove  David  to  the  course  which  led  to  the  throne.  David 
first  conceived  the  plan  to  take  the  leadership  in  Judah 
after  he  was  driven  from  Saul's  court,  and  was  led  to  seek 
further  the  throne  of  Israel  after  learning  of  the  death 
of  Jonathan. 

There  is  a  large  number  of  apparent  duplicates  in  our 
book.  Cheyne  has  made  a  catalogue  of  eleven  {Aids  to 
the  Devout  Study  of  Criticism,  pp.  8  ff .)  and  even  his  list 
is  defective.  To  complete  the  account  we  find:  (i)  2  :  17- 
36=3  :  12-21,  the  prediction  of  the  fall  of  the  house  of  Eli; 
(2)  8  :  10  :  17-27;  12=9,  10  : 1-16;  11,  Saul's  elevation  to 
the  throne;  (3)  10  :  10-12  =  19  :  22-24,  "  Is  Saul  among  the 
prophets? '*;  (4)  13  :  7b-i5a=i5,  the  rejection  of  Saul; 
(5)  16:14-23  =  17:55-18:5,  David  attached  to  SauFs 
court;  (6)  17  : 1-54=2  Sam.  21  :  19,  the  death  of  GoUath; 
(7)  18  :  10  f.  =  i9  : 9  f.,  casting  a  spear  at  David;  (8)  18  :  17- 
19=18  :  20-27,  Saul's  daughter  used  to  trap  David;  (9)  19  : 
1-7  =  20,  Jonathan's  effort  to  save  David;  (10)  20  :  11-17= 
23  :  16-18,  the  covenant  between  Jonathan  and  David; 
(11)  21  :  10-11  =  27,  David  at  Gath;  (12)  24=26,  David 
spares  Saul's  life;  (13)  31  =  2  Sam.  i  :  1-16,  Saul's  death. 

This  catalogue  is  conclusive  evidence  that  the  books  of 
Samuel  are  composite,  and  that  the  editor  had  various 
sources.  It  is  clear  that  it  often  happened  that  the  same 
story  appeared  in  different  sources,  but  with  considerable 
discrepancy  in  the  details.  It  is  fortunate  that  the  editor 
was  not  an  accomplished  critical  genius,  and  so  did  not 
weigh  the  material,  choosing  one  and  rejecting  the  other, 
but  frequently  retained  both  versions.  He  could  follow 
that  course  the  more  readily,  because  we  know  that  his 
interest  was  not  historical,  but  reUgious,  and  he  often 
found  a  religious  interest  in  each  of  two  discrepant  stories, 
and  to  lose  nothing,  incorporated  them  both.  In  our  quest 
for  the  historic  events,  we  are  often  constrained  to  use  one 
story  or  the  other,  or  perhaps  combine  elements  from  both. 


INTRODUCTION 


III.  Text  and  Versions 

For  a  full  account  of  the  various  texts  and  versions 
of  Samuel,  recourse  should  be  had  to  the  exhaustive  work 
of  Driver,  Notes  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  the  Books  of  Samuel. 
Here  it  suffices  to  notice  the  evidence  that  as  late  as  the 
third  century  B.C.,  there  were  different  recensions  of  the 
book  in  existence,  and  therefore  the  adoption  of  what  be- 
came a  standard  text  is  later  than  that  time.  The  notes 
show  that  the  Codex  Vaticanus  of  the  Septuagint  (G)  has 
sometimes  brief  passages  which  are  not  found  in  the  He- 
brew, and  that  it  frequently  lacks  passages,  occasionally 
of  considerable  length,  which  are  found  in  the  Hebrew 
text  which  finally  survived  as  the  standard. 

It  is  true  that  these  differences  may  be  accounted  for 
in  either  one  of  two  ways.  The  translators  may  have 
known  of  different  recensions  of  the  Hebrevv^  text,  and 
chose  one  at  variance  with  that  which  has  been  handed 
down  to  us.  Or  they  may  have  exercised  great  freedom, 
making  additions  freely  where  it  suited  their  purpose, 
and  making  omissions  w^hen  that  seemed  to  be  the  right 
course.  The  latter  alternative  is  altogether  improbable, 
for  the  Greeks  who  made  the  Septuagint  text  were  trans- 
lators, and  not  critics.  Moreover,  it  is  impossible  to 
explain  the  addition  and  omissions,  or  better  the  plus 
and  the  minus,  on  any  critical  grounds.  On  the  surface, 
for  example,  it  may  be  said  that  these  translators  deliber- 
ately omitted  17  :  12-31;  17  :  55-18  :  5  to  avoid  contra- 
dictions. To  w^hich  the  rejoinder  must  be  made,  that  those 
omissions  remove  but  a  part  of  the  discrepancies,  and  that 
there  are  numerous  other  irreconcilable  duplicates  both 
of  which  are  fully  preserved. 

IV.  Outline  of  Contents 

I.  Chs.  1-7.  The  conditions  which  prepare  the  way  for 
the  Kingdom. 
I.  Chs.  1-3.  Samuel  becomes  prophet  and  judge. 


INTRODUCTION 


2.  4:1-7:1.  The  fortunes  of  the  ark. 

3.  7  :  2-17.  Samuel's  war  on  the  PhiHstines. 
II.  Chs.  8-12.  The  estabhshment  of  the  Kingdom. 

1.  Ch.  8;  10  :  17-27;  Ch.  12.    The  later  story. 

2.  9  :  i-io:  16;  Ch.  11.     The  earlier  story. 
III.  Chs.  13-31.  The  Reign  of  Saul. 

1.  Chs.  13-15.    The  first  stage:  War  with  the  Philis- 

tines and  Amalekites. 

2.  16: 1-18  :  4.    The  second  stage:  David  is  attached 

to  Saul's  Court. 

3.  18  :  5-28  :  2.    The  third  stage:  vain  efforts  to  de- 

stroy David. 

4.  28  :  3-31: 13.    The  fourth  stage:    The  disaster  to 

the  house  of  Saul. 

V.  Bibliography 

Hastings,  Dictionary  of  the  Bible. 

Cheyne,  Encyclopedia  Bihlica. 

Driver,  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  the  Old  Testament. 

Cheyne,  Aids  to  the  Devout  Study  of  Criticism. 

Kent,  IsraeVs  Historical  and  Biographical  Narratives. 

Driver,  Notes  on  the  Hebrew  Text  and  the  Topography  of  the 

Books  of  Samuel. 
Wellhausen,  Der  Text  der  Bucher  Samuelis. 
H.  P.  Smith,  Samuel  (International  Critical  Commentary.) 
Budde,  Samuel  (Kurzer  Hand-Commentars). 
Nowack,  Richter,  Ruth  and  Bucher  Samuelis. 
Kirkpatrick,  Samuel  (Cambridge  Bible). 
Dhorme,  Les  Livres  de  Samuel. 
Kittel,  Biblia  Hehraica. 

G.  A.  Smith,  Historical  Geography  of  the  Holy  Land. 
Ewald,  History  of  Israel. 
H.  P.  Smith,  Old  Testament  History. 


13 


THE  FIRST  BOOK   OF   SAMUEL 

I.  The  Conditions  Which  Prepare  the  Way  for  the 
Kingdom,  Chs.  1-7 

I.  Samuel  Becomes  Prophet  and  Judge,  Chs.  1-3 
(i)  The  Story  of  Hannah,  i  :  1-2  :  11 

I.  Now  there  was  a  certain  man  of  Ramathaim-zophim, 
of  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim,  and  his  name  was 
Elkanah,  the  son  of  Jeroham,  the  son  of  Elihu,  the  son 


I  :  1-4  :  la.  There  are  two  strands  in  the  narrative,  one  of  which 
concerns  Samuel,  and  the  other  the  two  sons  of  Eli.  Belonging  to  the 
Samuel  section  we  have  i  :  1-2  :  ii,  18-21,  26,  3  :  1-4  :  la.  It  is 
probable  that  the  two  sections  were  originally  separate,  and  are  com- 
bined here  around  the  person  of  Eli,  because  he  was  Samuel's  chief 
as  well  as  the  father  of  the  discredited  Hophni  and  Phinehas.  They 
are  woven  together,  because  the  stories  about  Eli's  sons  serve  as  a 
background  for  4-6,  and  those  about  Samuel  for  7-16  :  13. 

In  the  Samuel  section,  if  we  leave  out  2  :  26,  3  :  11-4  :  la,  the 
material  has  the  character  of  primitive  stories,  and  it  serves  per- 
fectly well  as  an  introduction  to  Samuel  the  local  seer  of  ch.  9. 
This  early  story  has  been  annotated  so  that  in  its  present  form  it 
prepares  the  way  for  Samuel  as  the  famous  national  figure  in  ch.  7 
and  other  places. 

In  the  rest  there  is  a  primitive  note  except  in  2  :  17-36,  which  is  a 
vaticinium  post  eventum.  It  is  clear  that  the  story  of  Eli's  sons  is 
put  here  to  account  for  their  death  in  ch.  4.  There  was  originally  a 
story  of  the  abuse  of  the  priests,  and  the  compiler  uses  that,  with 
certain  additions  to  point  the  moral.  Violent  death  was  supposed 
to  be  a  visitation  from  God,  and  the  material  is  worked  up  accordingly. 
The  compiler  has  incorporated  two  stories  to  explain  the  death  of 

15 


i:2  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


2.  of  Tohu,  the  son  of  Zuph,  an  Ephraimite:  and  he  had 
two  wives;  the  name  of  the  one  was  Hannah,  and  the 
name   of   the   other   Peninnah:   and   Peninnah   had 

3.  children,  but  Hannah  had  no  children.    And  this  man 


Eli's  sons,  one  from  a  "man  of  God,"  2  :  17-36,  the  other  a  revelation 
to  Samuel,  3  :  12-19,  both  being  relatively  late  productions. 

Doubtless  the  two  stories  are  woven  together  to  explain  the  fact 
that  at  the  beginning  of  the  period  Eli  was  the  oracle,  and  later  on 
Samuel  occupies  that  place. 

1-8.  Hannah  the  barren  wife 

1 .  Ramathaim-Zophim.  As  Ramah  is  elsewhere  the  name  of  the 
residence  of  Elkanah  and  of  Samuel,  i  :  19;  2  :  11,  7  :  17,  the  form 
Ramathaim  must  be  an  error.  Ramah  means  hill  and  therefore 
naturally  was  a  common  name.  Several  places  are  so  called  in  the 
Bible,  and  it  is  impossible  to  identify  the  site  further  than  its  loca- 
tion in  the  hills  of  Ephraim.  After  G.  it  is  better  to  read  Zuphite 
instead  of  Zophim.  Zuph  then  would  be  the  founder  of  the  Ephrai- 
mite clan  to  which  Elkanah  belonged,  and  the  term  Zuphite  marks 
his  family  as  Ephraimite  marks  his  tribe.  Others  regard  Zuph  as  a 
geographical  term,  the  land  being  personified  as  the  ancestor  {cf. 
Driver).  Elkanah's  ancestry  is  traced  back  four  generations,  after 
the  manner  of  the  later  writers.  In  i  Chr.  6  :  26  f.,  36  f.  there  are 
parallel  and  slightly  different  genealogies  of  Samuel,  in  the  latter  of 
which  his  ancestry  is  traced  back  much  further  to  Levi.  The  evidence 
that  Samuel  was  an  Ephramite  is  so  clear  that  we  must  suppose  the 
Chronicler  bases  his  statement  on  the  fact  that  Samuel  served  as  a 
priest.  In  Samuel's  day  one  could  be  a  priest  without  being  a  Levite. 
Elkanah  is  pictured  as  a  religious  man,  faithfully  observing  the  regu- 
lar seasons  and  sacrifices,  and  as  a  just  man  in  his  tender  treatment 
of  his  childless  wife. 

2.  Hannah  had  no  children,  or  child  as  G.  Barrenness  was  re- 
garded as  a  serious  evil  among  the  Jews.  Elkanah's  condition  was 
much  like  Jacob's  in  that  the  wife  he  loved  most  bore  no  children. 

3.  From  year  to  year,  i.  e.,  yearly.  There  was  at  the  time  therefore 
but  a  single  annual  festival.  The  earliest  code  of  laws  provides  for 
three  yearly  pilgrimages  to  the  sanctuary,  Ex.  24  :  14-17.  The  festi- 
val kept  by  Elkanah  seems  to  be  the  ingathering,  which  came  at  the 
end  of  the  year.  Shiloh  is  about  9  mJles  north  of  Bethel.  From  Judg. 
18  :  31  it  appears  to  have  been  regarded  as  a  national  sanctuary, 
and  the  evidence  of  Jer.  7:12  confirms  that  inference.  At  this  time 
there  was  a  regular  temple  at  Shiloh,  and  this  temple  was  later 
destroyed,  but  when  the  calamity  happened  we  do  not  know.    Well- 

16 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


went  up  out  of  his  city  from  year  to  year  to  worship 
and  to  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  of  hosts  in  Shiloh.  And 
the  two  sons  of  Eli,  Hophni  and  Phinehas,  priests 

4.  unto  the  Lord,  were  there.  And  when  the  day  came 
that  Elkanah  sacrificed,  he  gave  to  Peninnah  his  wife, 

5.  and  to  all  her  sons  and  her  daughters,  portions:  but 
unto  Hannah  he  gave  a  ^  double  portion :  for  he  loved 
Hannah,  but  the  Lord  had  shut  up  her  womb.    And 

6.  her  rival  provoked  her  sore,^     for  to  make  her  fret, 

^  Or,  a  double  portion,  because  she  had  no  child. 
la  Better,  on  account  of  her  barrenness. 

hausen  says  it  was  destroyed  at  the  battle  of  Ebenezer,  i  Sam.  4; 
but  in  that  chapter  there  is  no  reference  to  such  a  catastrophe. 
Shiloh  was  the  home  of  the  prophet  Ahijah,  i  Kings  14  :  2, 4,  and  the 
temple  may  have  been  standing  in  his  day.  And  the  two  sons  of 
Eli,  Hophioi  and  Phinehas.  These  men  have  no  r61e  in  this  part  of 
the  story.  Eh  himself  serves  as  priest:  G.  patches  up  the  text  by 
prefixing  Eh,  reading  Eli  and  his  two  sons,  but  Eh  is  sufficiently  in- 
troduced when  Hannah  goes  to  the  temple,  v.  9.  The  passage  must 
be  regarded  as  a  harmonistic  gloss,  or  as  misplaced  from  2:12  where 
it  might  stand  quite  suitably. 

4.  Most  scholars  regard  vs.  4b-7a  as  parenthetical,  regarding  the 
story  proper  as  running  thus:  And  when  the  day  came  that  Elkanah 
sacificedy  then  she  wept  and  did  not  eat.  This  opinion  seems  to  me 
wrong,  for  it  leaves  us  without  the  real  cause  of  Hannah's  grief. 
The  cause  of  Hannah's  tears  was  the  fact  of  her  barrenness,  not 
Peninnah's  jeers,  and  she  was  reminded  of  her  estate  by  the  single 
portion  assigned  to  her.  There  is  a  part  of  the  section  which  is  not 
parenthetical,  being  in  fact  a  later  addition,  viz.  vs.  6-7a.  This 
passage  has  a  very  different  text  in  G.  and  contains  a  clause  need- 
lessly repeated  from  v.  5.  G.  lacks  and  to  her  daughters,  probably 
from  the  notion  that  girls  did  not  participate  in  religious  sacrifices 
but  cf.  Deut.  12  :  12. 

5.  Double  portion  is  impossible.  The  Hebrew  has  one  portion, 
followed  by  a  word  which  means  nostrils,  and  which  makes  no  sense 
here;  the  clause  in  G.  because  she  had  no  child,  completes  the  sense 
and  gives  the  correct  text.  By  a  slight  correction  from  Gr.  we  read 
the  next  sentence:  nevertheless  he  loved  Hamiah,  though  Jahveh  had 
shut  up  her  womb.  Barrenness  was  deemed  a  divine  visitation,  and 
so  could  be  removed  by  divine  intervention,  cf.  Judg,  13  :  2  ff. 

17 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


7.  because  the  Lord  had  shut  up  her  womb.  And  ^  as 
he  did  so  year  by  year,  when  she  ^  went  up  to  the 
house  of  the  Lord,  so  she  provoked  her;  therefore  she 

8.  wept,  and  did  not  eat.  And  Elkanah  her  husband 
said  unto  her,  Hannah,  why  weepest  thou?  and  why 
eatest  thou  not?  and  why  is  thy  heart  grieved?  am 

9.  not  I  better  to  thee  than  ten  sons?  So  Hannah  rose  up 
after  they  had  eaten  in  Shiloh,  and  after  they  had 
drunk.  ^    Now  EH  the  priest  sat  upon  his  seat  by  the 

10.  door  post  of  the  temple  of  the  Lord.    And  she  was  in 
bitterness  of  soul,  and  prayed  unto  the  Lord,  and 

1  Better,  so  she  did.  1^  Read  with  V  they.  -  G.  adds,  and  she  stood 

before  the  Lord. 

7.  The  implication  is  that  the  rival- wife  provoked  Hannah  only  or 
chiefly  at  the  time  of  the  annual  pilgrimage  to  Shiloh.  But  she  would 
certainly  not  fail  to  use  other  opportunities.  He  did.  The  text  must 
be  changed  to  read  she  did,  for  vs.  6-70.  contains  the  story,  probably 
interpolated,  of  Peninnah's  harassing  Elkanah's  favorite  wife.  And 
she  wept  goes  back  to  the  single  portion  of  v.  5. 

8.  Better  than  ten  sons.  Elkanah  refers  to  his  love  for  Hannah. 
The  point  of  his  question  is  that  the  love  of  her  husband,  which  she 
has,  is  better  than  ten  sons  without  the  husband's  love,  and  that  was 
probably  Peninnah's  portion. 

9-18.    Hannah  prays  for  a  son. 

9.  The  added  clause  from  G.  seems  necessary  here,  otherwise  we 
have  no  statement  of  Hannah's  going  to  the  temple  to  pray.  When 
the  sacrificial  meal  was  completed  Hannah  bethinks  herself  of  relief 
from  her  distress,  and  that  can  only  be  found  in  bearing  a  child. 
His  seat.  The  word  implies  a  position  of  dignity,  like  a  throne.  It 
appears  that  at  the  entrance  of  the  temple  there  was  a  seat  which  be- 
longed to  the  officiating  priest.  Temple  of  the  Lord.  The  word  tem- 
ple is  never  applied  to  a  tent,  and  therefore  it  is  plain  that  there  was 
a  permanent  sanctuary  at  Shiloh  at  this  period.  This  conclusion  is 
confirmed  by  the  use  of  the  term  door  post. 

10.  Bitterness  of  soul.  Hannah  was  in  deep  distress,  because, 
though  her  husband  loved  her,  she  had  never  been  able  to  requite 
her  husband's  love  by  bearing  him  a  child.  In  her  distress  she  went 
to  the  temple  to  pray,  the  recourse  of  a  pious  woman  who  believed 
that  God's  power  to  help  mankind  is  unlimited.    There  is  nothing 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


11.  wept  sore.  And  she  vowed  a  vow,  and  said,  O  Lord 
of  hosts,  if  thou  wilt  indeed  look  on  the  aflSiction  of 
thine  handmaid,  and  remember  me,^  and  not  forget 
thine  handmaid,^  but  wilt  give  unto  thine  handmaid  a 
man  child,  then  I  will  give  him  unto  the  Lord  all  the 
days  of  his  life,^  and  there  shall  no  razor  come  upon 

12.  his  head.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  she  continued 
praying  before  the  Lord,  that  Eli  marked  her  mouth. 

1  Omitted  in  G.  -  G.  adds:  and  wine  and  liquor  he  shall  not  drink. 

in  the  Heb.  to  indicate  Hannah's  position;  but  it  is  probable  that  she 
went  into  the  temple;  for  that  would  be  the  most  natural  place  to  say 
her  prayer  and  to  make  her  vow.  The  inference  has  the  support  of 
the  G.  addition  in  v.  9.  From  his  seat  at  the  door  Eli  could  see 
her  whether  she  was  inside  the  temple  or  outside. 

1 1 .  And  she  vowed  a  vow.  The  vow  was  very  common  in  Hebrew 
religion.  It  was  always  voluntarily  made  by  one  who  desired  peculiar 
assistance  from  God;  it  has  always  the  character  of  an  agreement, 
the  suppliant  promising  faithfully  to  do  something  supposed  to  be 
particularly  pleasing  to  God,  on  condition  that  God  would  grant  the 
desired  favor;  cf.  the  cases  of  Jacob,  Gen.  28  :  20  ff.,  and  of  Jephthah, 
Judg.  II  .'30  ff ,  In  later  days  there  was  apparently  much  laxity  in 
the  keeping  of  vows,  Eccles,  5:4  f,,  Num.  30  :ff.  Hannah  craves 
a  son,  and  vows  that  if  a  son  is  given  her,  he  shall  be  dedicated  to  the 
Lord  as  a  Nazarite,  and  shall  become  a  temple  servant.  A  man  child, 
literally,  seed  of  men,  an  expression  used  only  here.  It  would  naturally 
be  a  general  expression  for  a  child;  the  context  shows  that  a  male 
child  is  meant.  No  razor  shall  come  upon  his  head  is  interpreted 
to  mean  that  Samuel  was  to  belong  to  the  order  of  Nazarites,  one  of 
the  rules  of  which  was  not  to  shave  the  head.  Num.  6  :  1-8.  The 
understanding  of  the  G.  is  plain  since  it  has  added  the  rule  of  the 
order.  But  the  prohibition  of  drink  was  later,  so  far  as  the  child  is 
concerned.  In  the  story  of  Samson  the  mother  was  forbidden  strong 
drink  during  the  period  of  gestation,  but  the  sole  rule  for  the  child  was 
that  his  head  should  not  be  shaved,  Judg.  13  :  5,  Samuel  never  seems 
to  have  served  like  Eli  as  a  priest  at  a  temple,  and  was  known  later 
chiefly  as  a  prophet, 

12.  Continued  praying.  The  Heb,  words  are  difficult  to  render 
idiomatically,  but  imply  that  Hannah  kept  up  her  prayer  for  a  con- 
siderable time.  The  idea  is  that  Hannah  prayed  so  long  that  the 
priest's  attention  was  attracted.    Marked,  or  better,  was  watching. 

19 


1 :  13  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


13.  Now  Hannah,  she  spake  in  her  heart;  only  her  Ups 
moved,  but  her  voice  was  not  heard:  therefore  Eli 

14.  thought  she  had  been  drunken.  And  EU  said  unto 
her.  How  long  wilt  thou  be  drunken?  put  away  thy 

15.  wine  ^  from  thee.  And  Hannah  answered  and  said, 
No,  my  lord,  I  am  a  woman  of  a  sorrowful  spirit:  I 
have  drunk  neither  wine  nor  strong  drink,  but  I  poured 

16.  out  my  soul  before  the  Lord.  Count  not  thine 
handmaid  for  a  daughter  of  Belial:  for  out  of  the 
abundance  of  my  complaint  and  my  provocation  have 

1  Instead  oifrom  Ihee  G.  has:  and  depart  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord. 

The  priest  did  not  interpose  his  rebuke  until  he  had  observed  the 
supplicant  for  a  sufficient  time  to  confirm  his  suspicion  that  she  was 
drunk. 

13.  Only  her  lips  moved.  Hannah's  method  of  praying  was  evi- 
dently unusual  so  that  Eli  misinterpreted  her  strange  actions  as  due 
to  drink.  Inebriety  was  apparently  not  an  uncommon  sequel  to  the 
sacred  feasts.    (C/.  i  Cor.  11  :  21.) 

14.  In  G.  the  rebuke  is  administered  by  Eli's  servant,  but  as  the 
servant  does  not  appear  elsewhere  in  the  story,  this  text  is  an  attempt 
to  shield  the  priest  from  a  blunder.  Put  away  thy  wine,  i.  e.,  give  up 
the  had  habit  of  indulging  in  wine  to  excess.  In  G.  the  rebuke  goes 
further,  ordering  the  suffering  woman  away  from  the  temple. 

15.  Sorrowful  spirit  is  a  sympathetic,  but  inaccurate  rendering. 
The  word  does  not  mean  sorrowful,  but  hard,  severe,  stuhhorn.  The 
idea  may  be  that  Hannah  takes  the  attitude  of  Jacob  (Gen.  32  :  26), 
and  will  not  leave  the  temple  until  assured  that  her  prayer  will  be 
answered.  But  it  is  best  to  amend  the  text  with  G.  and  read,  a  hard 
life,  the  reference  being  to  her  years  as  a  childless  wife. 

16.  A  daughter  of  Belial  occurs  nowhere  else,  but  the  similar 
phrase  sons  of  Belial  is  frequently  applied  to  men  that  are  thoroughly 
bad,  e.  g.,  i  Sam.  2:12,  2  Sam.  16  :  7.  The  word  is  usually  regarded 
as  a  compound  of  words  meaning  not  and  worth.  But  Heb.  uses  com- 
pounds only  in  proper  names,  and  this  is  probably  the  name  of  some 
being  of  bad  repute.  The  word  is  found  as  a  proper  name  (see  Moore's 
Judges,  p.  419).  Hitherto  is  not  very  happy.  Smith  emends  the  text 
and  reads:  have  I  continued  [praying]  until  now.  Hannah  means  to 
assert  that  the  prayers,  which  were  [hitherto]  so  long  protracted, 
were  the  natural  result  of  the  excess  of  her  distress. 

20 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


17.  I  spoken  hitherto.  Then  EH  answered  and  said,  Go 
in  peace:  and  the  God  of  Israel  grant  thy  petition  that 

18.  thou  hast  asked  of  him.  And  she  said,  Let  thy  servant 
find  grace  in  thy  sight.  So  the  woman  went  her  way, 
and  did  eat,  and  her  countenance  was  no  more  sad. 

19.  And  they  rose  up  in  the  morning  early,  and  wor- 
shipped before  the  Lord,  and  returned,  and  came  to 
their  house  to  Ramah:  and  Elkanah  knew  Hannah 

20.  his  wife;  and  the  Lord  remembered  her.  And  it  came 
to  pass,  when  the  time  was  come  about,  that  Hannah 
conceived,  and  bare  a  son;  and  she  called  his  name 
Samuel,  saying,  Because  I  have  asked  him  of  the 

17.  Grant  thy  petition.  As  the  words  are  read  Eli  does  no  more 
than  add  his  prayer  to  Hannah's.  But  the  mere  endorsement  of  her 
prayer  would  hardly  satisfy  her;  nor  would  it  justify  Eli's  declaration 
go  in  peace.  The  words  should  be  rendered,  the  God  of  Israel  will  grant 
thy  petition,  thus  giving  Hannah  a  favorable  oracle  and  assuring  her 
that  her  prayers  were  not  in  vain  (so  Jastrow,  Journal  Biblical  Litera- 
ture, 1900,  p.  85)  cf.  on  V.  23. 

18.  Let  .  .  .  find.  Better  in  harmony  with  note  on  v,  17  thy 
servant  finds.  Hannah  is  satisfied  and  expresses  her  confidence  be- 
cause a  favorable  response  has  been  given  by  the  priest;  she  does  not 
request  further  favors.  And  did  eat  implies  that  she  returned  to  the 
sacrificial  meal  which  she  had  abandoned  on  account  of  her  distress 
of  spirit.  G.  amplifies  and  brings  out  the  meaning  clearly:  and  she 
went  to  her  lodging  and  ate  and  drank  with  her  husband.  Sad  is 
not  in  the  Heb.  either  expressed  or  impUed,  though  G.  suggests  some 
such  word.  The  marks  of  Hannah's  sorrow  were  her  refusal  to  eat 
and  her  tears.  At  this  point  the  conditions  are  changed  and  she  ate; 
therefore  we  should  expect,  and  her  tears  were  shed  no  more.  Counte- 
nance may  be  an  error  for  weeping. 

29-23a.     Hannah  gives  birth  to  a  son. 

19.  The  Lord  remembered  her,  referring  to  the  terms  of  her  vow, 
V.  1 1 .  The  conception  was  attributed  to  Jahveh's  accepting  the  terms 
of  the  vow  by  granting  the  request  of  the  supplicant. 

20.  The  clauses  are  disarranged  in  Heb.,  but  order  results  by  omit- 
ting and  Hannah  conceived,  or  transposing  to  the  end  of  v.  19  as  most 
Greek  texts.  The  time  was  come  about,  literally  at  the  circuit  of  the 
year,  i.  e.,  Samuel  was  born  a  year  after  Hannah  offered  her  prayer. 


1 :  21  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


21.  Lord.  And  the  man  Elkanah,  and  all  his  house, 
went  up  to  offer  unto  the  Lord  the  yearly  sacrifice, 

22.  and  his  vow.  But  Hannah  went  not  up;  for  she  said 
unto  her  husband,  /  will  not  go  up  until  the  child  be 
weaned,  and  then  I  will  bring  him,  that  he  may  appear 

23.  before  the  Lord,  and  there  abide  for  ever.  And 
Elkanah  her  husband  said  unto  her,  Do  what  seemeth 
thee  good;  tarry  until  thou  have  weaned  him;  only  the 
Lord  establish  his  word.    So  the  woman  tarried  and 


Called  his  name  Samuel.  Much  has  been  written  about  the  etymol- 
ogy of  this  name,  and  all  writers  assume  that  the  clause  because  I 
have  asked  him  of  Jahveh  is  an  explanation  of  the  meaning  of  the 
name.  Now  the  name  of  Samuel  does  contain  the  name  for  God,  El, 
but  it  does  not  contain  the  name  Jahveh,  and  that  is  what  Hannah 
employs.  Hannah  says  she  named  the  boy  Samuel  because  she  asked 
him  from  Jahveh,  but  she  does  not  necessarily  imply  that  the  name 
means  asked  of  Jahveh;  and  it  certainly  has  no  such  meaning.  As  a 
matter  of  fact  Samuel  contains  neither  the  word  for  ask  nor  the  name 
Jahveh.  Samuel  means  either  name  of  God,  or  possibly  as  Jastrow 
holds  of  spring  of  God  {J.  B.  L.  1900,  103).  The  passage  is  then  ex- 
plicable. The  pious  mother  names  her  first  born  child  of  God,  because 
he  was  given  in  answer  to  her  prayers,  and  therefore  was  entitled  to 
be  called  God's  offspring.  The  name  as  well  as  the  career  of  this 
prophet  has  therefore  a  Messianic  significance.  To  be  consistent  and 
grammatical  the  text  should  be  because  she  asked  him  ofJaJweh. 

2 1 .  And  his  vow.  This  seems  to  be  a  later  interpolation.  Elkanah 
had  made  no  vow,  and  offer  is  not  the  proper  verb,  but  pay,  or  fulfil. 
The  adding  of  ceremonial  observance  is  carried  still  further  in  G  which 
adds:  aiid  all  the  tithe  of  his  land. 

22.  Hannah  shows  her  fine  character  in  refraining  from  appearing 
at  the  sanctuary  until  she  was  in  a  position  to  fulfil  her  part  of  the 
vow.    Forever,  i.  e.,  for  his  lifetime,  as  v.  28  shows. 

23.  Only  the  Lord  established  his  word.  If  the  text  is  right,  these 
words  may  refer  to  some  divine  promise  of  which  there  is  no  mention 
in  the  preceding  passage,  for  there  is  not  even  an  implication  of  any 
promise  on  the  part  of  God.  Therefore  many  scholars  emend  after 
G.  thy  word,  making  Elkanah  pray  that  Jahveh  would  see  that  Han- 
nah kept  her  promise  to  dedicate  the  child  to  the  Lord.  It  may  be 
that  we  should  render,  surely  Jahveh  will  establish  his  word,  and  in- 
terpret that  Jahveh  will  be  able  to  accomplish  his  end,  the  securing 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  1 :  28 

24.  gave  her  son  suck,  until  she  weaned  him.  And  when 
she  had  weaned  him,  she  took  him  up  with  her,  with 
three  ^  bullocks,  and  one  ephah  of  meal,  and  a  bottle  of 
wine,  and  brought  him  unto  the  house  of  the  Lord  in 

25.  Shiloh:  and  the  child  was  young.    And  they  slew  the 

26.  bullock,  and  brought  the  child  to  Eli.  And  she  said, 
Oh  my  lord,  as  thy  soul  liveth,  my  lord,  I  am  the 
woman  that  stood  by  thee  here,^  praying  unto  the 

27.  Lord.    For  this  child  I  prayed;  and  the  Lord  hath 

28.  given  me  my  petition  which  I  asked  of  him:  therefore 

1  Or  better,  a  bullock  three  years  old,  cf.  v.  25  the  bullock.  2  Qr,  to  pray. 

of  the  child  without  the  necessity  for  Hannah's  appearing  at  the 
sanctuary  in  the  meantime.  The  expression  is  certainly  meant  to 
justify  Elkanah's  approval  of  Hannah's  course  in  sta3dng  away  from 
Shiloh  until  she  can  fulfil  her  vow. 

23b-28  :  II  Hannah  gives  her  son  to  God. 

In  this  section  Hannah  acts  quite  by  herself.  In  the  original  text, 
as  shown  in  the  notes,  Elkanah  is  not  mentioned  at  all,  and  there 
is  no  reason  to  assume  that  the  presentation  of  Samuel  was  made  on 
the  occasion  of  the  annual  sacrifice.  Indeed  as  it  is  said  that  Hannah 
took  the  boy  to  Shiloh  as  soon  as  she  had  weaned  him,  it  would  be  a 
singular  coincidence  if  this  occurred  at  the  period  of  the  feast.  Han- 
nah had  made  the  vow  on  her  own  responsibility,  and  now  she  dis- 
charges her  obligation  without  even  the  presence  of  her  husband. 

24?.  When  she  had  weaned  him.  Hebrew  women  suckled  their 
children  for  three  years  or  longer.  Samuel  may  have  been  five  or 
six  years  old  when  he  was  left  at  Shiloh.  At  a  much  earlier  age  he 
would  have  been  a  great  care  to  Eli.  The  chUd  was  young  is  im- 
possible. The  words  must  be  rendered,  the  child  was  a  child,  and  that 
is  too  obvious  to  require  a  record.  From  G.  we  can  get  afid  the  child 
was  with  her,  and  that  is  usually  adopted,  but  the  information  is 
highly  superfluous.  It  is  best  to  amend  25b  and  transpose  the  clause 
so  that  we  get,  and  the  mother  of  the  lad  went  in  to  Eli  having  the  lad 
with  her.  The  first  course  was  to  offer  the  suitable  sacrifices  outside 
of  the  temple;  the  second  was  to  seek  the  priest  in  the  temple  and  to 
present  to  him  her  first-born.  They  slew,  i.  e.,  the  attendants  at  the 
temple. 

28.  I  have  granted  him.  There  is  much  playing  on  the  word  ask, 
which  is  not  brought  out  in  the  Enghsh.    Granted  is  a  doubtful  ren- 

23 


2 : 1  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


I  also  have  granted  him  to  the  Lord;  as  long  as  he 
liveth  he  is  granted  to  the  Lord.  And  he  worshipped 
the  Lord  there. 

Hannah^ s  Prayer,  2  :  i-io 

I.  And  Hannah  prayed,  and  said: 
My  heart  exulteth  in  the  Lord, 
Mine  horn  is  exalted  in  ^  the  Lord  : 

1  G.  better  my  God. 

dcring  as  the  meaning  would  most  naturally  be  7  have  caused  him  to 
ask,  but  that  makes  no  sense.  Moreover,  Hannah  had  asked  a  son  of 
Jahveh,  but  Jahveh  had  not  asked  anything  of  her,  and  yet  we  find 
granted  or  A.  V.  lent,  twice  in  this  verse.  Jastrow  connects  the  word 
ask  with  the  oracular  inquiry,  and  therefore  Hannah  would  say,  / 
have  made  him  an  oracle-giver  for  Jahveh,  i.  e.,  a  priest  or  prophet 
(/.  B.  L.,  1900,  99  f.).  He  worshipped.  The  subject  would  be  Sam- 
uel, though  our  text  may  think  of  Elkanah.  It  is  best  to  read  with 
G.,  and  she  left  him  there  with  Jahveh,  and  there  we  have  a  suit- 
able connection  with  the  conclusion  in  2  :  11. 

The  idea  of  the  compiler  is  that  Hannah  composed  this  prayer 
after  the  birth  and  dedication  of  Samuel.  The  poem  is,  however, 
so  inappropriate  that  we  cannot  suppose  the  words  were  spoken  by 
her  or  that  the  real  author  had  her  case  in  his  mind.  The  G.  text 
lacks  the  words  and  Hannah  prayed,  and  it  inserts  the  song  at  a 
slightly  different  place,  i.  e.,  before  the  last  clause  of  i  :  28.  The 
grounds  for  its  insertion  here  is  the  phrase  in  v.  5;  but  Hannah  had 
not  borne  seven,  and  there  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  Peninnah 
had  become  barren.  IMoreover  these  words  are  part  of  an  elaborate 
statement  of  instances  of  which  Jahveh  reverses  present  conditions. 
The  use  of  the  term  king  in  v.  10  is  evidence  that  the  poem  was 
written  after  the  establishment  of  the  monarchy.  It  is  true  that 
Cheyne  regards  lob  as  an  addition  to  make  a  proper  liturgical  close 
to  the  song,  but  his  contention  lacks  adequate  evidence.  He  re- 
gards the  poem  as  coming  from  the  early  post-exile  period  (Bamp. 
Led.,  p.  57).  . 

The  poem  is  composed  on  the  model  of  the  Psalms  and  might 
well  be  in  that  collection.  It  expresses  the  exultation  of  the  nation 
because  of  some  great  triumph  over  an  enemy  that  was  more  power- 
ful than  itself.  The  theme  of  the  song  is  the  unbounded  power  of 
God,  who  can  save  by  many  or  by  few.    There  is  an  interesting  sub- 

24 


THE   FIRST   BOOK   OF  SAMUEL  2:3 


My  mouth  is  enlarged  over  mine  enemies; 
Because  I  rejoice  in  thy  salvation. 

2.  There  is  none  holy  as  the  Lord; 
For  there  is  none  beside  thee: 
Neither  is  there  any  rock  like  our  God. 

3.  Talk  no  more  so  exceeding  proudly; 


sidiary  subject  which  is  worked  out  most  elaborately,  and  that  Is 
the  revolution  by  which  God  reverses  existing  conditions.  This 
theme  finds  expression  in  the  Magnificat  (Lk.  i  :  46  ff.)  and  still  more 
strildngly  in  the  parable  of  Dives  and  Lazarus  (Lk.  16  :  19  ff.).  This 
teaching  undoubtedly  springs  from  the  national  experience  which  gave 
occasion  to  the  poem.  The  nation  of  Israel  had  been  brought  low  and 
its  enemy  had  trampled  upon  it  ruthlessly.  Then  Jahveh  intervened, 
and  Israel's  horn  was  raised  high,  while  the  foe  was  trampled  in  the 
dust.  Historical  situations  lilce  that  may  be  found  in  nearly  all 
periods  from  the  time  of  "  the  judges"  to  that  of  the  Maccabees. 

1.  Mine  horn.  The  horn  was  characteristic  of  the  mighty  and 
aggressive  animals  and  is  used  as  a  symbol  of  strength.  Is  exalted, 
lit.  is  high;  the  picture  is  drawn  from  the  animal  which  in  the  moment 
of  triumph  raises  aloft  its  horned  head.  My  mouth  is  enlarged,  i.  e., 
is  opened  wide.  This  may  indicate  sconi  as  Ps.  35  :  21;  Is.  57  -.4. 
(so  Budde,  Driver);  or  the  mouth  may  be  open  to  swallow  the  enemy 
as  Ps.  81  :  10;  Is.  5  :  14.  Salvation  is  rather  too  religious  a  word  for 
this  place,  rescue  or  deliverance  is  better.  This  line  expresses  the 
theme  of  the  poem,  joy  over  Jahveh's  deliverance. 

2.  The  second  line  is  incomplete  and  it  is  well  to  supply  an  ad- 
jective from  G.:  there  is  none  rightous  beside  thee;  or  even  better 
transpose  clauses  as  G  does  thus:  there  is  none  righteous  as  om  God. 
There  is  none  holy  beside  thee.  Rock  is  often  used  as  a  figure  for 
God,  Deut.  32  :  4,  15,  18,  37;  Ps.  18  :  31;  Is.  30  :  29.  The  lasting,  im- 
movable quality  of  the  rock,  or  the  rocky  heights  as  a  safe  refuge, 
gave  rise  to  the  figure.  The  parallelism  which  is  a  characteristic  of 
Heb.  poetry  is  improved  by  substituting  the  adjective. 

3.  The  first  line  is  intolerably  prosaic,  more  so  in  the  original  than 
in  the  English.  It  has  been  expanded  by  accidental  repetition  and 
probably  we  should  omit  exceeding.  The  real  force  of  the  line  is  this: 
do  not  multiply  proud  boastings.  The  enemy  is  addressed  and  in 
view  of  the  downfall  brought  upon  him  by  Jahveh,  his  arrogant 
utterances  will  be  heard  no  longer.  Knowledge  is  plural  in  the  Heb. 
to  emphasize  the  largeness  of  the  divine  attribute.  God  knows  what 
man  does,  and  knows  how  to  do  different  things  himself.     As  the 

25 


2  : 4  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Let  not  arrogancy  come  out  of  your  mouth : 
For  the  Lord  is  a  God  of  knowledge, 
^  And  by  him  actions  are  weighed. 

4.  The  bows  of  the  mighty  men  are  broken, 

And  they  that  stumbled  are  girded  with  strength. 

5.  They  that  were  full  have  hired  out  themselves  for 

bread; 
And  they  that  were  hungry  have  ceased: 
Yea,  the  barren  hath  borne  seven; 
And  she  that  hath  many  children  languisheth. 

6.  The  Lord  killeth,  and  maketh  alive: 

He  bringeth  down  to  ^  the  grave,  and  bringeth  up. 

7.  The  Lord  maketh  poor,  and  maketh  rich: 
He  bringeth  low,  he  also  lifteth  up. 

8.  He  raiseth  up  the  poor  out  of  the  dust, 
He  lifteth  up  the  needy  from  the  dunghill. 
To  make  them  sit  with  princes, 

1  G.  and  God  makes  ready  his  affairs.  -  Or  better,  skeol. 

latter  idea  is  emphasized  in  the  song,  the  Gk.  rendering  of  the  next 
line  is  preferable. 

4.  They  that  stumbled,  i.  e.,  through  weakness,  in  contrast  with 
mighty  men  not  because  of  rough  paths  cf.  Ps.  109  :  24.  This  is  the 
beginning  of  the  reversals  of  fortune  which  characterize  the  poem. 

5.  A  clause  is  misplaced  in  the  English  Version  and  the  line  must  be 
rendered,  they  that  were  sated  with  bread  are  working  for  wages.  Smith 
follows  G.  and  emends  the  verb  to  do  lack,  and  in  the  next  line  for 
have  ceased  which  is  very  abrupt,  reads,  itiherit  the  land,  thus  sharpen- 
ing the  antithesis.  Languisheth.  This  line  is  very  like  Jer.  15:9, 
but  is  not  necessarily  later. 

6.  The  two  lines  present  a  case  of  synonymous  parallelism.  Those 
that  are  brought  to  life  are  obviously  not  the  ones  that  have  been 
killed;  therefore  the  ones  that  are  brought  up  from  Sheol,  are  not 
those  that  have  gone  down.  As  man  is  conceived  as  coming  orginaUy 
from  the  dust.  Gen.  3  :  19,  the  expression  is  natural. 

8.  Dunghill,  or  refuse  heap,  which  was  foimd  outside  of  every 
26 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  2:  II 


And  inherit  the  throne  of  glory: 
For  the  pillars  of  the  earth  are  the  Lord's, 
And  he  hath  set  the  world  upon  them. 
9.  He  will  keep  the  feet  of  his  holy  ones, 

But  the  wicked  shall  be  put  to  silence  in  darkness; 
For  by  strength  shall  no  man  prevail. 

10.  They  that  strive  with  the  Lord  shall  be  broken  to 

pieces; 
Against  them  shall  be  thunder  in  heaven: 
The  Lord  shall  judge  the  ends  of  the  earth; 
And  he  shall  give  strength  unto  his  king, 
And  exalt  the  horn  of  his  anointed. 

11.  And  Elkanah  went  to  Ramah  to  his  house.    And  the 
child  did  minister  unto  the  Lord  before  Eli  the  priest. 

town,  and  upon  which  those  who  had  no  other  shelter  would  sleep, 
Lam.  4  :  5.  The  whole  Hne  is  found  in  Ps.  113  :  7.  The  last  two 
lines  of  this  verse  are  regarded  by  many  as  a  later  addition.  The 
reference  to  God  as  the  creator  of  the  world  fits  in  poorly  in  a  passage 
descriptive  of  his  gracious  acts  towards  man.  G.  has  a  very  different 
text,  thus  adding  to  our  suspicion.  The  text  of  G.  is,  however,  designed 
evidently  to  make  the  poem  more  appropriate  to  Hannah,  reading: 
granting  the  vow  to  the  vowcr,  and  he  blesses  the  years  of  the  righteous. 

9.  In  darkness  refers  to  the  condition  in  Sheol,  for  put  to  silence 
means  slain,  cf.  Ps.  31  :  17;  Jer.  49  :  26.  G.  lacks  the  first  two  lines 
of  this  verse. 

ID.  They  that  strive  with  the  Lord  are  the  foes  of  Israel.  To  at- 
tack the  people  of  God  is  to  attack  God  himself.  Thunder.  God's 
DOwer  is  often  manifested  in  the  storm,  and  that  is  one  of  the  common 
igencies  by  which  the  enemy  is  vanquished,  Josh.  10  :  11.  In  this 
/erse  there  is  in  G.  an  insertion  of  six  lines  from  Jer,  9  :  23  f.  to  the 
jflfect  that  one  should  glory  neither  in  wisdom,  might,  nor  wealth, 
Dut  in  understanding  and  in  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord.  It  is  difficult 
;o  see  why  the  passage  was  transferred  to  this  place. 

II.  It  is  better  with  most  modern  authorities  to  connect  this  pas- 
sage with  I  :  28b  as  v/e  have  here  the  completion  of  the  story  of  the 
)resentation.  It  is  best  to  follow  text  of  G.  thus:  And  she  left  him 
here  before  the  Lord,  and  went  to  Ramah.  This  makes  a  better  intro- 
iuction  to  v.  lib,  and  recognizes  Hannah's  preeminence  in  the  story 

27 
I! 


2:  12  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


(2)  The  wickedness  of  the  House  of  Eli,  2  :  12-36 

12.  Now  the  sons  of  Eli  were  sons  of  Belial;  they  knew 

13.  not  the  Lord.  And  the  custom  of  the  priests  with  the 
people  was,  that,  when  any  man  offered  sacrifice,  the 
priest's  servant  came,  while  the  flesh  was  in  seething, 

14.  with  a  fleshhook  of  three  teeth  in  his  hand;  and  he 
struck  it  into  the  pan,  or  kettle,  or  caldron,  or  pot; 
all  that  the  fleshhook  brought  up  the  priest  took  ^ 

1  Better  with  G.  for  himself. 

of  Samuel's  infancy.  The  original  connection  is  broken  by  the  in- 
sertion of  Hannah's  song. 

Two  strands  are  woven  together  in  this  section,  one  dealing 
with  Samuel,  vs.  18-21,  26;  and  the  other  dealing  with  the  house 
of  Eli,  vs.  12-17,  22-25,  27-36.  Samuel  rises  in  favor  while  the  house 
of  Eli  degenerates,  a  reversal  of  condition  such  as  was  emphasized 
in  Hannah's  song.  As  Samuel  passes  from  infancy  to  an  age  when  he 
won  the  favor  of  men,  v.  26,  a  considerable  period  of  time  is  assumed. 

12-17.  Two  abuses  are  described,  taking  flesh  from  the  pot,  12- 
14,  and  demanding  it  raw,  15  f. 

12.  The  passage  in  i  :  3,  which  does  not  belong  where  it  stands, 
would  fit  in  well  here  as  an  introduction:  The  two  sons  of  Eli,  Hophni 
mid  Phinchas,  were  priests  of  Jehovah;  and  the  sons  of  Eli  were  sons  of 
Belial.  As  Eli  is  several  years  older  than  in  ch.  i  his  sons  now  take  a 
part  of  his  functions.  On  Belial,  cf.  note  on  i  :  16.  They  did  not 
know  Jahveh.  This  is  equivalent  to  the  more  common  phrase  to  fear 
Jahvch.  To  know  is  conceived  as  having  an  ethical  import.  The 
priests  knew  a  good  deal  about  Jahveh's  requirements,  but  they 
did  not  put  their  knowledge  into  practice. 

13  f.  The  custom  of  the  priests.  As  our  text  stands  this  serves  as 
an  introduction  to  the  description  of  the  two  priestly  abuses  in  connec- 
tion with  sacrifices.  But  Mishpat  never  means  a  wrong  custom;  and 
in  Dt.  18:  3  we  have  essentially  the  same  phrase  where  it  has  clearly 
the  meaning  the  right  of  the  priests.  Therefore  with  several  scholars 
we  must  connect  with  v.  12  thus:  they  did  not  know  [i.  e.,  respect] 
Jahveh  or  the  right  of  the  priests  from  the  people.  The  first  abuse  is 
described  in  v.  13  f.  The  wrong  consisted  of  thrusting  a  three  pronged 
instrument  into  the  vessel  in  which  a  sacrificial  animal  was  boiling, 
and  appropriating  for  the  priest  whatever  could  be  thus  harpooned. 
The  later  law  in  the  Priest  Code  prescribed  that  the  priest  should 
have  the  breast  and  shoulder  of  all  animals  sacrificed,  Lev.  7  :  28  ff. 

28 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  2:17 


therewith.    So  they  did  in  Shiloh  unto  all  the  Israelites 

15.  that  came  thither.^  Yea,  before  they  burnt  the  fat,  the 
priest's  servant  came,  and  said  to  the  man  that 
sacrificed,  Give  flesh  to  roast  for  the  priest;  for  he  will 

16.  not  have  sodden  flesh  of  thee,  but  raw.  And  if  the  man 
said  unto  him,  They  will  surely  burn  the  fat  presently, 
and  then  take  as  much  as  thy  soul  desire th;  then  he 
would  say,  Nay,  but  thou  shalt  give  it  me  now:  and 

17.  if  not,  I  will  take  it  by  force.  And  the  sin  of  the  young 
men  was  very  great  before  the  Lord:  for  men  abhorred 
the  offering  of  the  Lord. 

1  G.  /o  sacrifice  to  Jahvek. 

What  the  law  was  at  this  time  is  unknown,  but  it  is  evident  that  some 
fixed  portion  was  the  priest's  right,  and  that  he  was  trying  to  get  a 
larger  or  better  portion  than  his  customary  due.  The  four  names 
indicate  that  the  flesh  was  boiled  in  any  sort  of  a  vessel  which  the 
sacrificer  could  procure.  The  priest*s  servant.  The  same  term  is 
applied  in  v.  17  to  the  sinners,  young  men.  Either  the  same  word  is 
used  in  two  senses,  referring  in  v.  17  to  Hophni  and  Phinehas,  or 
we  should  render  and  the  priest's  son,  priest  referring  to  Eli.  In  that 
case  in  V.  15  the  son  pretends  that  he  wants  the  uncooked  meat  for 
EH. 

15  f.  Yea;  better,  also,  or  again,  as  the  word  introduces  the  second 
abuse.  The  passage  is  difficult,  for  the  priests  at  first  demamd  raw 
flesh  for  roasting  instead  of  the  boiled  meat  described  above.  Then 
when  the  worshipper  ofl'ers  to  give  the  meat  as  soon  as  the  fat  is 
burned,  the  priests  refuse  to  wait.  It  is  not  improbable  that  in  the 
early  days  before  the  priests'  dues  were  regulated  by  law  there  was 
sometimes  a  difference  of  opinion  between  the  priest  and  the  wor- 
shipper. The  worshipper  might  strive  to  retain  as  much  as  possible 
in  view  of  the  evident  greed  of  the  priests,  and  the  latter  may  have 
endeavored  to  make  sure  of  a  liberal  and  choice  portion  by  seizing  it 
as  soon  as  the  animal  was  slain.  The  early  law  prescribed  that  the 
fat  should  be  consumed  before  the  morning  after  the  feast,  Ex.  23: 

18.  It  was  evidently  regarded  as  vital  here  that  the  fat  be  burned 
before  the  other  meat  was  eaten.  As  thy  soul  desireth  perhaps  in- 
dicates that  the  portion  belonging  to  the  priest  was  not  exactly 
determined;  or  the  phrase  may  mean  according  to  your  demands. 

29 


2:i8  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


1 8.  But  Samuel  ministered  before  the  Lord,  being  a  child, 

19.  girded  with  a  Hnen  ephod.  Moreover  his  mother  made 
him  a  httle  robe,  and  brought  it  to  him  from  year  to 
year,  when  she  came  up  with  her  husband  to  offer  the 

20.  yearly  sacrifice.  And  EH  blessed  Elkanah  and  his 
wife,  and  said,  The  Loex)  give  thee  seed  of  this  woman 
for  the  loan  which  was  lent  to  the  Lord.    And  they 

21.  went  unto  their  own  home.  And  the  Lord  visited 
Hannah,^  and  she  conceived,^  and  bare  three  sons  and 
two  daughters.  And  the  child  Samuel  grew  ^  before 
the  Lord. 

1  Lacking  ia  G.  rightly.  -  Or  wilh. 

18.  18-21.  Eli  blesses  Samuel's  parents.     Ministered.    The 

phrase  is  repeated  from  v.  11,  necessarily  after  the  insertion  of  the  sec- 
tion about  Eli's  sons;  so  in  3  :  i.  Being  a  child  indicates  his  age,  but 
it  is  more  accurate  to  render,  a  child  girded  with  a  linen  ephod,  as  the 
meaning  is  that  he  was  already  performing  certain  functions  at  the 
temple.  The  linen  ephod  was  the  essential  vestment  of  the  priest, 
though  it  was  no  part  of  his  clothing.  22  :  18.  Ephod  in  earlier  use 
was  an  image  to  be  worshipped  (Judg.  8  :  27,  17:  46,  and  see  article 
by  Foote,  /.  B.  L.  XXI). 

19.  A  little  robe.  Little,  because  Samuel  was  still  a  young  boy. 
The  robe  was  the  long  outer  garment  worn  over  the  tunic  and  whose 
wearing  indicated  a  person  of  social  distinction. 

20.  Eli's  act  implies  his  high  regard  for  the  young  disciple  who  had 
been  so  wonderfully  brought  to  him.  Loan.  Here  we  have  the  play 
on  the  work  for  ask  which  was  so  puzzling  in  i  :  27.  The  word  can 
hardly  mean  loan;  the  proper  sense  is  request,  but  that  makes  poor 
sense.  Jastrow  accepts  an  amended  text  and  renders:  in  place  of 
what  has  been  asked  for,  which  is  devoted  to  Jahveh  (J.  B.  L.  1900,  loi). 
That  gives  the  correct  idea,  for  Samuel  was  not  loaned,  but  surren- 
dered absolutely. 

21.  Visited  here  means  to  confer  a  divine  favor.  The  word  means 
strictly  to  pay  attention  to,  and  then  to  take  such  action  as  may  be 
needed,  whether  favorable  or  otherwise. 

Grew,  or  more  definitely  grew  up,  as  the  word  implies  an  advance 
in  years,  cf.  Gen.  21  :  20.  Before  the  Lord,  i.  e.,  in  faithful  service  to 
the  Lord  in  the  temple  at  Shiloh. 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


22.  Now  Eli  was  very  old;  and  he  heard  all  that  his  sons 
did  unto  all  Israel,  and  how  that  they  lay  with  the 
women  that  did  service  at  the  door  of  the  tent  of 

23.  meeting.  And  he  said  unto  them,  Why  do  ye  such 
things?  for  I  hear  of  your  evil  dealings  from  all  this 

24.  people.  Nay,  my  sons;  for  it  is  no  good  report  that  I 
hear:  ye  make  the  Lord's  people  to  transgress.    If 

25.  one  man  sin  against  another,  God  shall  judge  him: 

22.  The  first  part  of  the  verse  plainly  refers  to  the  abuses  described 
in  vs.  12-17.  The  rest  mentions  a  vice  not  referred  to  elsewhere. 
There  is  no  evidence  in  early  sources  of  women  serving  in  the  tem- 
ple. The  word  for  serve  is  used  in  this  sense  only  by  late  writers. 
The  late  term  tent  of  meeting  replaces  temple.  The  passage  is  lacking 
in  the  Vatican  text  of  G.  These  facts  justify  the  belief  that  the  pas- 
sage is  interpolated  by  a  later  hand  which  desired  to  magnify  the 
sins  of  Eli's  sons. 

23.  G.  has  a  better  text  why  do  ye  such  things  as  I  hear  from  every 
mouth  of  the  Lord's  people}  Evil  dealings  needlessly  anticipates  v.  24. 
Evidently  the  worshippers  whose  privileges  had  been  abused  by 
Hophni  and  Phinehas  had  complained  to  Eli  of  their  rapacity. 

24.  Ye  make  transgress.  This  rendering  is  quite  impossible,  and 
there  was  no  hint  that  the  priests  had  led  the  people  to  sin.  Driver 
translates:  which  I  hear  Jehovah's  people  to  be  spreading,  so  Budde  and 
Nowack;  but  that  adds  nothing  to  what  was  already  said,  and  impUes 
that  EH's  chief  concern  was  the  bad  reputation  his  sons  were  acquir- 
ing. From  V.  25  it  appears  that  he  is  here  charging  his  sons  with  an 
offense  against  Jahveh.  The  Lucian  text  of  G.  may  be  rendered: 
do  not  prevent  the  people  from  serving  Jahveh,  and  that  gives  us  what 
the  context  demands. 

25.  God  shall  judge  him.  The  correct  rendering  is  probably,  the 
judges  will  intervene  as  Ex.  22:8.  But  the  judge  is  the  mouthpiece 
of  God  and  so  his  decision  has  divine  authority.  Just  because  he 
stands  in  the  place  of  God,  the  judge  occupies  a  point  of  vantage 
over  the  litigants;  but  if  one  offend  God,  there  is  no  superior  power 
to  which  appeal  may  be  made  to  stay  punishment.  The  Lord  would 
slay  them,  or  more  accurately  was  pleased  to  slay  them.  Therefore 
Eli's  appeal  must  needs  be  in  vain.  This  conception  of  God's  in- 
fluence upon  man  is  frequent  in  the  O.  T.,  note  hardening  of  Pharoah's 
heart;  the  tempting  of  David  to  make  the  fatal  census,  2  Sam.  24. 
(See  my  Good  and  Evil,  Lect.  I.)  In  the  case  before  us  there  is  no 
implication  that  Jahveh  led  the  priests  into  sin  in  order  to  have  a 

31 


2:26  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


but  if  a  man  sin  against  the  Lord,  who  shall  intreat 
for  him?  Notwithstanding  they  hearkened  not  unto 
the  voice  of  their  father,  because  the  Lord  would 

26.  slay  them.  And  the  child  Samuel  grew  on,  and  was  in 
favour  both  with  the  Lord,  and  also  with  men. 

27.  And  there  came  a  man  of  God  unto  EH,  and  said  unto 
him.  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Did  I  reveal  myself  unto 
the  house  of  thy  father,  when  they  were  in  Egypt  in 

28.  bondage  to  Pharaoh's  house?  And  did  I  choose  him 
out  of  all  the  tribes  of  Israel  to  be  my  priest,  to  go  up 

case  against  them,  but  only  that  he  prevented  their  heeding  their 
father's  plea  for  reformation.  Perhaps  this  conception  underKes 
the  petition  in  the  Lord's  Prayer,  Lead  us  not  into  temptation.  In 
the  later  theology  this  office  was  associated  with  Satan,  cf.  2  Sam. 
24  :  I  and  i  Chr.  21  :  i,  Mt.  4  :  i. 

26.  Obscure  as  this  verse  is  in  the  original,  it  clearly  represents 
a  stage  in  Samuel's  development  between  that  described  in  v.  21 
and  that  of  ch.  3.  The  passage  is  inserted  here  to  point  a  contrast: 
the  sons  of  Eli  had  attained  bad  repute  among  men,  and  were  re- 
garded as  quite  hopeless  in  the  eyes  of  God :  while  Samuel  as  he  grew 
up  won  a  good  name  both  with  God  and  with  men. 

27-36.  The  prediction  of  the  overthrow  of  Eli's  house.  This  sec- 
tion has  all  the  marks  of  a  late  addition.  The  style  is  Deuteronomic; 
and  some  of  the  phrases  are  quite  late.  The  definite  prediction  of 
the  death  of  Eli's  sons  in  one  day  raises  a  doubt;  and  their  death  is 
to  be  a  sign  to  Eli,  but  Eli  died  directly  after  their  fall.  The  passage 
betrays  knowledge  of  the  rise  of  Zadok  and  the  fall  of  Abiathar  in 
the  time  of  Solomon.  The  conception  of  the  Aaronic  priesthood  is 
much  later  than  the  time  of  Eli.  Moreover,  the  reproach  made 
against  EH  ignores  his  rebuke  of  his  sons.  Finally,  the  prediction 
of  the  collapse  of  Eli's  house  is  more  naturally  told  in  the  story  of 
Samuel  proper  ch.  3. 

27.  With  G.  it  is  better  to  understand  w.  27,  28  as  a  declara- 
tion, not  as  a  series  of  questions,  /  revealed  myself,  etc.  Man  of 
God  is  often  applied  to  a  prophet  whose  name  is  not  known,  i  Ki. 
13  :  i;  and  sometimes  is  applied  to  a  celestial  being,  Judg.  13  :  6,  8; 
the  term  covers  any  one  who  carries  the  message  of  God.  In  bond- 
age is  found  in  G.  and  is  surely  correct. 

28.  To  be  my  priest.  The  reference  is  to  Aaron,  and  as  Aaron  is 
called  Eli's  father  the  implication  is  that  Eli  is  a  Levite.    There  is 

32 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


unto  mine  altar,  to  burn  incense,  to  wear  an  ephod 
before  me?  and  did  I  give  unto  the  house  of  thy 
father  all  the  offerings  of  the  children  of  Israel  made 

29.  by  fire?  ^  Wherefore  kick  ye  at  my  sacrifice  and  at 
mine  offering,  which  I  have  commanded  in  my  habita- 
tion; and  honourest  thy  sons  above  me,  to  make 
yourselves  fat  with  the  chiefest  of  all  the  offerings  of 

30.  Israel  ^  my  people?  Therefore  the  Lord,  the  God  of 
Israel,  saith,  I  said  indeed  that  thy  house,  and  the 
house  of  thy  father,  should  walk  before  me  for  ever: 
but  now  the  Lord  saith.  Be  it  far  from  me;  for  them 
that  honour  me  I  will  honour,  and  they  that  despise 

31.  me  shall  be  lightly  esteemed.  Behold,  the  days  come, 
that  I  will  cut  off  thine  arm,  and  the  arm  of  thy 
father's  house,  that  there  shall  not  be  an  old  man  in 

1  G.  adds:/or/oo(f.  2  q  ;  hefore  me. 

nothing  known  about  Eli's  forbears.  To  wear  an  ephod  is  dubious; 
the  correct  translation  is  to  bear  an  ephod.  The  ephod  was  a  part  of 
the  priestly  paraphernalia.  But  it  was  also  some  implement  used  in 
divination,  which  was  used  by  the  priests,  cf.  14  :  3,  18;  23  :  9  f.,  30  : 
7  f.    The  latter  appears  to  be  the  meaning  here. 

29.  The  word  rendered  kick  occurs  elsewhere  only  in  Deut.  32:15 
where  it  has  a  Hteral  and  appropriate  sense.  Here  it  might  pass  as 
American  slang,  but  the  Hebrews  were  not  American.  It  is  better 
to  follow  G.  and  read  as  Smith;  why  dost  than  look  with  an  evil  [or 
greedy]  eye  on  my  sacrifices?  This  change  absorbs  in  my  habitation, 
an  interpretative  rendering  of  a  doubtful  word.  Honorest  thy  sons. 
The  change  to  the  singular  shows  a  rebuke  of  Eli  alone,  in  distinction 
from  his  house.  The  reproach  ignores  the  futile  effort  of  the  aged 
priest  to  reform  his  sons,  v.  22-25. 

30.  The  words  show  the  implied  condition  in  God's  promises. 
The  continuance  of  this  house  in  the  priesthood  depended  upon  their 
faithful  discharge  of  their  obligations. 

31.  Arm.  Smith  follows  G.  and  reads  seed=  posterity.  Arm  signifies 
power,  and  if  we  retain  that  reading  the  prediction  would  be  that  the 
family  of  Eli  will  be  weakened,  so  that  none  shall  reach  a  good  old 
age. 

33 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


32.  thine  house.  And  thou  shalt  behold  the  affliction  of 
my  habitation,  in  all  the  wealth  which  God  shall  give 
Israel:  and  there  shall  not  be  an  old  man  in  thine 

2,^.  house  for  ever.  And  the  man  of  thine,  whom  I  shall 
not  cut  off  from  mine  altar,  shall  be  to  consume  thine  ^ 
eyes,  and  to  grieve  ^  thine  heart:  and  all  the  increase  of 
thine  house  shall  die  ^  in  the  flower  of  their  age. 

34.  And  this  shall  be  the  sign  unto  thee,  that  shall  come 
upon  thy  two  sons,  on  Hophni  and  Phinehas;  in  one 

35.  day  they  shall  die  both  of  them.  And  I  will  raise  me 
up  a  faithful  priest,  that  shall  do  according  to  that 
which  is  in  mine  heart  and  in  my  mind;  and  I  will 
build  him  a  sure  house;  and  he  shall  walk  before  mine 

36.  anointed  for  ever.     And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that 

1  G.  his.  2  Read  after  G.  by  the  sword  of  men. 

32.  The  text  is  corrupt  and  difficult.  A  part  is  lacking  in  the  Vatican 
text  of  G.  My  habitation  is  surely  wrong.  The  idea  may  be:  thou 
shall  see  distress  in  thy  habitation  in  all  the  good  that  shall  befall  Israel. 
While  the  nation  shall  prosper,  the  house  of  Eli  will  suffer  acute 
distress.  The  second  part  of  the  verse  is  a  needless  repetition  of 
V.  31b.    The  same  idea  is  stated  again  in  other  words  in  v.  33b. 

33.  The  one  member  of  the  house  of  Eli  who  shall  not  be  cut  off 
must  be  Abiathar,  the  sole  survivor  of  the  massacre  of  the  priests 
of  Nob  (ch.  22)  and  who  became  the  companion  and  counsellor 
of  David  in  his  years  of  struggle.  It  is  better  to  follow  G.  and  read 
his  for  thine,  the  reference  then  being  to  Abiathar's  deposition  and 
banishment  by  Solomon  because  he  took  part  in  the  rebellion  of 
Adonijah,  i  Kings  2  :  26  f. 

34.  This  prediction  was  quickly  fulfilled,  4:11;  but  as  Eli  died 
immediately  afterwards,  the  sign  meant  little  to  him. 

35.  A  faithful  priest.  This  refers  to  Zadok  who  was  raised  to  the 
priesthood  by  Solomon  in  place  of  the  banished  Abiathar,  i  Chr. 
29  :  22.  The  reference  cannot  be  to  Samuel,  as  the  older  writers 
supposed  (e.  g.,  Camb.  Bible),  for  the  promise  following  exactly  fits 
Zadokj  and  cannot  apply  to  Samuel.  The  house  of  Zadok  retained 
the  priesthood  before  kings  down  to  the  captivity. 

36.  This  description  shows  the  conditions  following  Josiah's  re- 

34 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


every  one  that  is  left  in  thine  house  shall  come  and 
bow  down  to  him  for  a  ^  piece  of  silver  and  a  loaf  of 
bread,  and  shall  say,  ^  Put  me,  I  pray  thee,  into  one  of 
the  priests'  offices,  that  I  may  eat  a  morsel  of  bread. 

(3)  The  Call  of  Samuel  to  he  a  Prophet,  3  : 1-4  :  la 

3.  And   the   child   Samuel  ministered   unto   the  Lord 

before  Eli.    And  the  word  of  the  Lord  was  precious  ^ 

2.  in  those  days;  there  was  no  open  vision.    And  it  came 

1  Better,  payment.         2  Qr,  attach  me  to  one  of  priests^  offices.         ^  Or,  rare. 

forms,  when  the  priests  of  the  sanctuaries  scattered  through  the 
country  were  brought  to  Jerusalem,  where  they  were  deemed  an 
inferior  order,  and  picked  up  their  living  at  the  temple  as  best  they 
could,  2  Kings,  23  : 9,  Ezek.  44  :  10  ff. 

Ch.  3.  With  Budde  we  may  hold  that  originally  this  chapter  de- 
scribed the  call  of  Samuel.  The  way  is  prepared  in  the  beautiful  and 
primitive  story  of  a  revelation  in  a  vision  of  the  night,  but  the  revela- 
tion as  we  have  it  is  nothing  but  a  denunciation  of  EU  and  a  prediction 
of  the  downfall  of  his  house,  and  this  can  hardly  be  original.  Evidently 
there  has  been  a  substitution  of  material,  and  the  original  call  of 
Samuel  is  lost.  To  this  have  been  added  statements  to  account  for 
Samuel's  preeminence  as  he  was  viewed  in  one  section  of  this  book. 
The  purpose  of  the  compiler  is  clearly  disclosed  in  the  amplified 
text  with  which  the  passage  ends  in  G.,  for  v.  21  runs  thus:  and  the 
Lord  appeared  again  in  Shiloh,  for  the  Lord  was  revealed  to  Samuel. 
A}td  Samuel  was  established  to  be  a  prophet  for  the  Lord  to  all  Israel, 
from  one  end  of  the  land  to  the  other.  And  Eli  was  exceedingly  old,  and 
his  two  sons  continued  their  course,  and  their  way  was  evil  before  the 
Lord. 

1 .  C/.  2  : 1 1 ,  18.  Word  of  the  Lord  is  used  here  in  a  technical  sense, 
cf.,  V.  21,  where  it  seems  to  refer  to  a  method  of  revelation,  an  inter- 
pretation supported  by  the  parallel  term  vision.  The  point  is  that 
Jahveh  had  not  at  the  time  been  appearing  in  a  visible  form,  though 
prophets  had  spoken  in  his  name,  2  :  27  ff.  Precious,  or  rather  rare. 
The  parallel  shows  that  the  word  of  Jahveh  in  this  form  was  so 
scarce  that  it  was  really  non-existent.  Open  is  vague.  The  word 
really  means  break  or  burst  out.  The  text  is  suspected  by  many,  but 
the  meaning  may  be  that  man's  sleep  was  not  wont  to  be  broken  in 
upon  by  visions  from  the  Lord. 

2.  He  could  not  see,  another  mark  of  Eli's  old  age,  of  which  we 

35 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


to  pass  at  that  time,  when  EH  was  laid  down  in  his 
place,  (now  his  eyes  had  begun  to  wax  dim,  that  he 

3.  could  not  see),  and  the  lamp  of  God  was  not  yet 
gone  out,  and  Samuel  was  laid  down  to  sleepy  in  the 
temple  ^  of  the  Lord,  where  the  ark  of  God  was; 

4.  that  the  Lord  called  ^  Samuel:  and  he  said.  Here 

5.  am  I.  And  he  ran  unto  Eli,  and  said,  Here  am  I;  for 
thou  calledst  me.    And  he  said,  I  called  not;  lie  down 

6.  again.  And  he  went  and  lay  down.  And  the  Lord 
called  yet  again,  Samuel.  And  Samuel  arose  and 
went  to  Eli,  and  said.  Here  am  I;  for  thou  calledst  me. 

1  Omit  with  G.  2  g.  Samuel,  Samuel. 

find  frequent  mention.  Because  of  his  poor  sight  Samuel  was  now 
performing  duty  as  the  guardian  of  the  ark  at  night.  Eli's  sons  do 
not  figure  in  this  passage. 

3.  Lamp  of  God;  the  lamp  was  sacred,  and  was  kept  burning  at 
night  that  there  might  be  a  beacon  for  Jahveh  in  his  temple.  It 
would  appear  that  just  enough  oil  was  used  to  last  through  the  night, 
and  that  the  reference  here  shows  that  the  call  came  shortly  before 
dawn.  Therefore  we  should  render  the  next  clause,  and  Samuel  was 
sleeping  in  the  temple,  for  R.  V.  implies  that  Samuel  had  just  lain  down 
when  he  heard  the  voice.  The  fact  that  the  ark  of  God  was  in  the 
room  where  Samuel  slept  shows  that  he  slept  in  the  temple  itself. 
Eli  must  have  been  near  by,  presumably  in  one  of  the  rooms  which 
adjoined  the  sanctuary  proper. 

4.  It  is  better  to  read  with  G.  and  Jahveh  called,  Samuel,  Samuel; 
and  the  name  should  be  repeated  in  v.  6.  The  name  is  repeated  for 
emphasis,  so  Gen.  22  :ii.  Curiously  the  Hebrew  has  the  repeated 
name  only  in  v.  10,  where  it  is  not  required  at  all  after  as  at  other  times. 
Here  am  I  is  the  regular  acknowledgment  of  a  call  by  name  in  He- 
brew like  our  "here"  at  roll-call.  Samuel  says  it  first  immediately 
upon  hearing  the  voice,  and  again  after  he  reached  EH's  presence. 

5.  For  thou  calledst  me.  These  words  have  no  place  here,  but 
may  have  been  put  here  for  the  sake  of  uniformity  in  the  boy's  re- 
marks to  Eh;  or  Samuel  may  have  found  Eli  asleep  and  waked  him 
up,  giving  this  remark  as  the  reason  for  disturbing  him.  Samuel 
evidently  was  asleep  each  time  he  heard  the  voice,  hence  it  was  easy 
to  identify  it  with  the  voice  of  his  chief.  Eli  may  have  called  Samuel 
at  night  on  various  occasions. 

36 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


And  he  answered,  I  called  not,  my  son;  lie  down 

7.  again.  Now  Samuel  did  not  yet  know  the  Lord, 
neither  was  the  word  of  the  Lord  yet  revealed  unto 

8.  him.  And  the  Lord  called  Samuel  again  the  third 
time.  And  he  arose  and  went  to  Eli,  and  said.  Here  am 
I;  for  thou  calledst  me.    And  Eli  perceived  that  the 

9.  Lord  had  called  the  child.  Therefore  Eli  said  unto 
Samuel,  Go,  lie  down:  and  it  shall  be,  if  he  call  thee, 
that  thou  shalt  say.  Speak,  Lord;  for  thy  servant 
heareth.    So  Samuel  went  and  lay  down  in  his  place. 

10.  And  the  Lord  came,  and  stood,  and  called  as  at  other 
times,  Samuel,  Samuel.     Then  Samuel  said.  Speak; 

11.  for  thy  servant  heareth.   And  the  Lord  said  to  Samuel, 
Behold,  I  will  do  a  thing  in  Israel,  at  which  both  the 

12.  ears  of  every  one  that  heareth  it  shall  tingle.    In  that 


7.  These  statements  show  that  this  was  Samuel's  inaugural  vision, 
cf.  Is.  6.  Because  Samuel  had  had  as  yet  no  personal  association  with 
Jahveh  he  did  not  recognize  the  voice.  The  power  to  prophesy  had 
not  yet  been  given  him,  therefore  he  could  not  realize  what  person 
was  calling. 

8.  And  Eli  perceived.  The  blind  priest  recognizes  the  source  of 
the  call  by  inference.  People  used  to  go  to  sleep  at  a  sacred  place 
hoping  that  the  proximity  to  the  deity  would  insure  a  revelation,  cf. 
Solomon's  visit  to  Gibeon,  i  Kings  3.  As  Samuel  slept  by  the  sacred 
ark  he  was  in  a  favorable  position  for  a  message  from  God,  At  the 
first  or  even  second  call  Eli  may  have  deemed  it  an  ordinary  dream, 
but  persistence  to  the  third  call  convinces  him  that  Jahveh  has  a 
message  for  his  servant. 

9.  Eli  now  instructs  Samuel  what  to  do  in  order  to  secure  the  rev- 
elation. First,  he  must  resume  his  sleep;  and  second,  instead  of 
rousing  up,  he  must  answer  by  a  certain  formula.  In  this  formula, 
Jahveh  should  be  omitted  as  G.  and  in  agreement  with  v.  10. 

10.  And  stood.  The  voice  implies  a  presence,  and  here  it  is  dis- 
tinctly stated  that  Jahveh  appeared  in  physical  form,  otherwise 
there  could  be  no  speaking  or  standing. 

12.  As  this  statement  seems  to  refer  to  the  late  passage  2  :  27-36, 
it  is  by  many  regarded  as  an  interpolation  here.    It  is  quite  as  likely 

37 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


day  I  will  perform  against  Eli  all  that  I  have  spoken 
concerning  his  house,  from  the  beginning  even  unto 

13.  the  end.  For  ^  I  have  told  him  that  I  will  judge  his 
house  for  ever,  for  the  iniquity  ^  which  he  knew,  be- 
cause his  sons  did  bring  a  curse  upon  themselves,  and 

14.  he  restrained  them  not.  And  therefore  I  have  sworn 
unto  the  house  of  Eli,  that  the  iniquity  of  Eli's  house 
shall  not  be  purged  with  sacrifice  nor  offering  for  ever. 

15.  And  Samuel  lay  until  the  morning,^  and  opened  the 
doors  of  the  house  of  the  Lord.    And  Samuel  feared  to 

16.  shew  Eli  the  vision.    Then  Eh  called  Samuel,  and  said, 

17.  Samuel,  my  son.  And  he  said,  Here  am  I.  And  he 
said,  What  is  the   thing  that  the  Lord  hath  spoken 

1  Or,  thou  shall  tell.  -  G.  of  his  sons.  3  Add  with  G.  and  he  arose  in  the 

morning. 

that  the  late  passage  may  have  been  inserted  to  explain  this  verse. 
The  words  imply  a  series  of  threats  which  may  have  come  to  Eli  from 
time  to  time  in  view  of  the  wickedness  of  his  sons. 

13.  Did  bring  a  curse  upon  themselves  is  a  translation  which 
strains  the  text.  In  fact  the  construction  in  the  Heb.  is  ungrammati- 
cal.  The  idea  is  not  correctly  brought  out  either,  for  we  require  a 
statement  of  the  evil  done  by  Eh's  sons  which  justifies  their  punish- 
ment, whereas  this  rendering  describes  a  penalty  which  has  already 
come.  By  a  very  slight  change  we  get  the  reading  of  G.  his  sons 
cursed  God.  This  is  not  to  be  taken  as  an  exaggerated  interpretation 
of  the  actions  of  those  young  men,  known  to  us  from  2:  12  ff.,  but  as 
a  description  of  a  fact  otherwise  unknown.  The  cursing  of  God  was 
an  unpardonable  offense  even  in  the  olden  times,  i  Kings,  21  :  10, 
Job,  2:9;  hence  no  amount  of  sacrifice  could  wipe  away  this  sin  or 
avert  its  punishment,  v.  14.  Restrained  is  the  rendering  of  a  word 
which  does  not  occur  elsewhere,  and  we  cannot  be  sure  of  the  sense. 
Restrained  contradicts  2  :  23  ff.  and  is  probably  wrong.  The  point 
seems  to  be  that  Eli  did  not  prevent  his  sons  from  blaspheming  God. 

15.  Opened  the  doors.  Samuel  was  really  a  temple  servant,  and 
had  been  doing  the  menial  work  at  the  temple  up  to  this  time,  when 
God  chose  the  servant  rather  than  the  master  to  receive  his  message. 
Note  that  the  revelation  is  called  frankly  a  vision. 

17.  God  do  so  to  thee  introduces  a  form  of  imprecation  found  only 
38 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


unto  thee?  I  pray  thee  hide  it  not  from  me:  God  do  so 
to  thee,  and  more  also,  if  thou  hide  any  thing  from  me 
i8.  of  all  the  things  that  he  spake  unto  thee.  And  Samuel 
told  him  every  whit,  and  hid  nothing  from  him.  And 
he  said.  It  is  the  Lord:  let  him  do  what  seemeth  him 

19.  good.    And  Samuel  grew,  and  the  Lord  was  with  him, 
and  did  let  none  of  his  words  fall  to  the  ground. 

20.  And  all  Israel  from  Dan  even  to  Beer-sheba  knew 
that  Samuel  was  established  to  be  a  prophet  of  the 


in  Ruth,  Samuel  and  Kings.  The  words  were  accompanied  by  some 
symbolical  action,  originally  perhaps  killing  a  sacrificial  victim,  but 
later  rending  a  garment,  breaking  a  stick,  or  something  of  that  kind. 
The  result  would  be  that  Samuel,  who  had  been  afraid  to  disclose  the 
revelation  of  disaster,  was  now  afraid  to  withhold  it:  naturally,  being 
humane,  he  would  prefer  to  hide  the  bad  tidings,  but  the  case  becomes 
different  when  the  person  chiefly  concerned  demands  the  truth. 

18.  It  is  the  Lord  or  Jahveh.  This  is  the  first  time  that  Eli  uses 
the  name  of  Jahveh  to  Samuel.  With  fine  tact  he  lets  Samuel  him- 
self learn  who  spoke  to  him.  Now  that  his  submission  is  to  be  made, 
he  must  assert  the  fact  that  his  submission  is  to  the  will  of  Jahveh. 
Eli  was  a  noble  character.  Everything  that  we  learn  of  him  in  these 
stories  raises  him  highly  in  our  esteem.  In  explaining  the  downfall  of 
his  house,  evil  is  attributed  to  his  sons,  not  to  him.  Samuel  was 
destined  to  face  a  like  condition. 

19.  Grew  or  grew  w/>  as  in  2  :  21.  The  last  part  of  our  story  brings 
Samuel  to  full  manhood  as  he  appears  in  the  sequel  in  ch.  7.  But  a 
considerable  period  of  time  may  be  covered  in  growing  up,  and  it  is 
probable  that  Samuel  was  a  young  man  at  the  time  this  vision  came. 
The  popular  idea  that  he  was  a  mere  child  has  no  support,  for  the 
term  rendered  child  in  v,  i  is  as  indefinite  as  our  hoy.  Fall  to  the 
ground  and  so  be  wasted  like  untimely  fruit.  Samuel's  predictions 
always  were  fulfilled,  and  that  proved  that  he  was  a  true  prophet. 
The  popular  belief  made  a  prophet  a  sharer  of  divine  omniscience, 
and  apparently  enabled  hun  to  control  the  future  so  that  what  he 
said  would  surely  come  to  pass.    Cf.  i  Kings  17:1. 

20.  Dan  and  Beer-sheba  were  the  towns  which  marked  the  re- 
motest northern  and  southern  points  in  the  land  of  Israel.  Samuel 
is  represented  here  as  attaining  a  reputation  extending  through  the 
whole  nation. 

39 


THE   FIRST  BOOK   OF   SAMUEL 


21.  Lord.    And  the  Lord  appeared  again  in  Shiloh:  for 
the  Lord  revealed  himself  to  Samuel  in  Shiloh  by  the 
4.  word  of  the  Lord.    And  the  word  of  Samuel  came  to 
all  Israel. 

2.  The  Capture  and  Return  of  the  Ark,  4:  ib-7:  i 

Now  Israel  went  out  against  the  Philistines  to  battle, 

and  pitched  beside  Eben-ezer:  and   the  Phihstines 

2.  pitched  in  Aphek.    And  the  Philistines  put  themselves 

21,  The  Lord  appeared.  The  fact  is  the  Lord  had  already  ap- 
peared and  the  tautology  is  puzzling.  Smith  proposes  an  ingenious 
emendation,  and  Israel  appeared  in  Shiloh  again.  The  vdcious  oppres- 
sion of  the  priests  had  driven  the  people  away  from  the  sanctuary,  but 
now  that  divine  revelations  could  be  had  again  by  a  true  prophet, 
the  people  from  all  parts  of  the  land  again  frequented  the  temple 
at  Shiloh.  G.  has  an  added  clause,  the  most  important  statement 
being  that  Eli's  sons  continued  their  notoriously  evil  life.  Word  of 
Jahveh,  cf.  on  v.  7 

This  section  relates  the  beginning  of  the  Philistine  wars;  but  the 
campaign  is  only  mentioned  because  it  bears  on  the  history  of  the  ark, 
the  ark  being  throughout  the  topic  of  supreme  importance. 

The  passage  shows  a  different  source  from  cc.  1-3.  Samuel  is 
never  mentioned  once,  and  as  be  had  been  described  as  the  national 
prophet,  he  certainly  must  have  figured  largely  here  as  he  does  in 
the  later  wars.  Moreover,  even  when  the  ark  is  taken  to  the  front, 
this  source  knows  only  the  sons  of  Eli,  who  had  been  denounced  as 
hopelessly  wicked  as  its  warders  in  1-3.  The  person  of  Samuel  is 
quite  unknown  to  this  writer.  On  the  other  hand,  such  evidence  as 
we  have  indicates  an  early  and  well  informed  author.  The  sec- 
tion belongs  to  the  oldest  strand  of  material  in  Samuel,  like  ch.  9. 
It  has  marked  Jewish  coloring  in  cc.  5  f.,  and  has  evidently  been 
retouched  here  and  there  by  late  hands. 

Israel  is  defeated  in  battle  with  the  Philistines  with  disastrous 
results,  4  :  ib-22. 

I.  In  G.  the  story  begins  with  an  additional  clause:  and  it  came 
to  pass  in  those  days  that  the  Philistines  gathered  for  war  against  Israel. 
This  text  suggests  an  invasion,  and  consistently  omits  part  of  v.  8, 
while  the  Heb.  indicates  an  uprising  in  Israel.  The  latter  is  right. 
Judah  had  long  been  subject  to  the  Philistines,  Judg.  15  :  11;  and 
V.  9  shows  that  the  central  part  of  the  country  was  held  in  bondage 
at  this  time.    Eben-ezer  was  the  scene  of  two  other  battles  with  the 

40 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  4:4 


in  array  against  Israel:  and  when  they  joined  battle, 
Israel  was  smitten  before  the  Philistines:  and  they  slew 

3.  of  the  amiy  in  the  field  about  four  thousand  men.  And 
when  the  people  were  come  into  the  camp,  the  elders 
of  Israel  said.  Wherefore  hath  the  Lord  smitten  us 
to-day  before  the  PhiHstines?  Let  us  fetch  the  ark. 
of  ^  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  ^  out  of  Shiloh  unto  us, 
that  it  may  come  among  us,  and  save  us  out  of  the 

4.  hand  of  our  enemies.  So  the  people  sent  to  Shiloh,  and 
they  brought  from  thence  the  ark  of  ^  the  covenant 
of  the  Lord  of  hosts,^  which  sitteth  upon  the  cheru- 

1  Better  our  God.  -  Better  Jahveh  as  in  v.  6,  so  in  v.  6,  5. 

Philistines,  5:7  :  12,  the  name  being  explained  by  Samuel's  victory. 
The  place  has  not  been  identified,  but  as  Aphek  was  probably  on 
the  border  of  the  plain  of  Sharon,  Eben-ezer  must  have  been  in  the 
same  neighborhood.  From  this  position  and  the  proximity  of 
Shiloh  it  appears  that  Ephraim  was  the  tribe  mainly  involved  in 
this  war, 

2.  Four  thousand  men.  The  large  number  killed,  cf.  v.  10,  if  in- 
deed we  can  trust  these  figures,  indicates  that  Israel  had  a  big  army  in 
the  field  and  that  the  battle  had  been  a  severely  contested  struggle. 

3.  Into  the  camp.  The  Israelities  had  retreated  to  their  base  at 
Eben-ezer.  They  evidently  were  not  pursued  by  the  Philistines, 
probably  because  the  latter  had  been  punished  too  severely.  The 
elders  of  Israel.  The  government  was  not  now  in  the  hands  of  an 
individual  as  was  reputed  to  be  the  case  in  the  time  of  Moses  and  of 
Joshua  and  of  the  judges,  but  in  a  body  probably  comprising  the 
clan  leaders.  The  Lord  smitten  us.  The  enemy  was  probably 
superior  in  numbers  and  equipment,  but  Israel  believed  that  adversity 
as  well  as  prosperity  came  from  their  God.  Let  us  fetch  the  ark. 
On  the  ark  cf.  Peters,  Religion  of  the  Hebrews  (consult  index),  and 
Arnold,  Ephod  and  Ark.  This  statement  implies  the  answer  to  the 
question  of  the  elders.  The  people  were  defeated  because  they  had 
failed  to  take  into  their  battle  lines  the  sacred  ark  signifying  the 
presence  of  Jahveh.  The  ark  was  regularly  taken  with  the  armies 
in  war,  cf.  2  Sam.  11  :  11.  Which  sitteth  upon  the  cherubin.  This 
phrase  is  interpolated  by  a  later  writer  who  drew  upon  the  story 
of  the  temple  of  Solomon  in  which  were  two  gigantic  figures  under 
whose  wings  the  ark  rested,  i  Kings  6  :  23  flf.,  8  :  6  f.    There  is  better 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


bim:  and  the  two  sons  of  Eli,  Hophni  and  Phinehas, 
were  there  with  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  God. 

5.  And  when  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  came 
into  the  camp,  all  Israel  shouted  with  a  great  shout,  so 

6.  that  the  earth  rang  again.  And  when  the  Phihs tines 
heard  the  noise  of  the  shout,  they  said.  What  meaneth 
the  noise  of  this  great  shout  in  the  camp  of  the  He- 
brews? And  they  understood  that  the  ark  of  the  Lord 

7.  was  come  into  the  camp.    And  the  Philistines  were 

omitted  with  G.  as  the  point  is  that  the  sons  of  Eli  came  to  the  camp 
with  the  ark.  This  statement  shows  that  this  source  knows  nothing 
of  Samuel,  whose  place  as  the  guardian  of  the  ark  is  here  taken  by 
Hophni  and  Phinehas. 

5.  All  Israel  shouted,  for  the  presence  of  the  ark  was  an  assurance 
of  victory.  The  earth  rang  again,  or  better,  resounded,  or  reechoed^ 
from  the  noise  of  the  tumult.  There  was  a  large  body  of  troops 
shouting,  and  their  piercing  cries  were  easily  heard  in  the  PhiUstine 
camp  which  must  have  been  a  considerable  distance  away.  The 
prechcate  in  this  form  occurs  but  twice  elsewhere,  see  i  :  19,  i  Kings 
I  :  45,  in  both  cases  with  "city"  as  subject,  the  meaning  being  that 
the  city  was  astir. 

6.  The  Hebrews.  So  the  Israelities  are  called  by  the  Egyptians 
and  the  Philistines,  but  they  rarely  apply  the  term  to  themselves. 
The  word  means  those  from  beyond,  referring  probably  to  the  Jordan, 
from  the  east  side  of  which  most  of  the  Hebrews  entered  Canaan. 
Understood,  or  better  ascertained.  An  interval  must  be  presupposed 
after  the  question  of  the  Phihstines,  during  which  scouts  were  sent 
out  to  learn  what  had  caused  such  great  excitement  in  the  camp  of 
the  enemy.  The  remarks  of  the  Philistines  reveal  a  marked  Jewish 
coloring. 

7.  Afraid.  All  these  peoples  were  intensely  reUgious,  and  they 
were  especially  strong  in  their  belief  in  the  power  of  any  gods  to 
work  disaster.  The  tales  they  had  heard  of  the  havoc  wrought  by 
the  God  of  Israel  (v.  8)  predisposed  them  to  fright  as  they  learned 
of  his  presence  in  the  army  of  Israel.  They  identify  the  ark  with 
God.  After  woe  unto  us,  the  G.  has  an  interesting  addition,  which 
strangely  was  not  noticed  by  Driver,  viz:  deliver  us  0  Lord,  this  day. 
The  Philistines  prayed  to  their  god  against  the  God  of  the  enemy. 
Heretofore  the  Philistines  had  often  fought  Israelites,  but  the  latter 
had  never  employed  the  ark  before  this  occasion. 

42 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


afraid,  for  they  said/  God  is  come  into  the  camp. 
And  they  said,  Woe  unto  us!  for  there  hath  not  been 

8.  such  a  thing  heretofore.  Woe  unto  us!  who  shall 
dehver  us  out  of  the  hand  of  these  mighty  ^  gods? 
these  are  the  gods  that  smote  the  Egyptians  with  all 

9.  manner  of  plagues  in  the  wilderness.  Be  strong,  and 
quit  yourselves  like  men,^  O  ye  Philistines,  that  ye  be 
not  servants  unto  the  Hebrews,  as  they  have  been  to 

10.  you:  quit  yourselves  like  men,^  and  fight.  And  the 
PhiHstines  fought,  and  Israel  was  smitten,  and  they 
fled  every  man  to  his  tent:  and  there  was  a  very  great 
slaughter;   for  there  fell  of  Israel   thirty   thousand 

11.  footmen.     And  the  ark  of  God  was  taken;  and  the 

1  G.  these  gods.       2  So  G.  the  Heb.  has  majestic.       '  Lacking  in  some  texts  of  G. 

8.  The  gods.  The  Hebrew  word  for  God  is  plural,  a  fact  of  which 
no  satisfactory  explanation  is  known.  The  Philistines  apparently 
know  the  word  without  knowing  the  Hebrew  usage.  In  v.  7  also 
the  word  is  construed  as  a  plural  in  the  G.,  as  consistency  requires. 
The  wilderness  was  not  the  scene  of  Egypt's  discomfiture.  Wellh. 
emended  to  read  and  •with  pestilence. 

9.  The  Hebrew  text  asserts  that  the  Israelites  had  already  been 
subjugated  by  the  Philistines,  and  if  we  may  trust  the  Samson 
stories  as  historical  sources,  some  of  the  tribes,  especially  Judah, 
had  long  felt  this  iron  hand.  It  appears  that  the  Joseph  clans,  in 
the  hill  country  of  Ephraim,  had  been  reduced  to  subjection  also. 
The  exhortation  was  the  appeal  of  the  leaders  to  the  men  in  the  ranks. 

10.  To  his  tent.  In  the  previous  battle  the  Hebrews  were  beaten, 
but  the  whole  body  retreated  to  their  common  camp:  in  this  con- 
test the  defeat  was  much  more  decisive,  though  thirty  thousand 
slain  may  be  an  exaggeration,  and  the  routed  troops  scattered,  each 
survivor  going  to  his  own  home  so  that  for  the  time  being  the  Hebrew 
army  ceased  to  exist.  Footmen,  cf.  v.  2,  where  the  general  term  men 
is  used.  There  can  scarcely  be  any  special  force  in  the  word  here, 
for  other  kinds  of  troops  did  not  exist  in  this  period. 

11.  The  ark  of  God  was  taken.  The  capture  of  the  ark  was  the 
crowning  triumph  to  the  Philistines.  In  modern  wars — at  least  up 
to  very  recent  days  in  which  the  character  of  war  has  completely 
changed — supreme  satisfaction  is  taken  in  the  capture  of  flags  be- 

43 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


two  sons  of  Eli,  Hophni  and  Phinehas,  were  slain. 

12.  And  there  ran  a  man  of  Benjamin  out  of  the  army,  and 
came  to  Shiloh  the  same  day  with  his  clothes  rent, 

13.  and  with  earth  upon  his  head.  And  when  he  came,  lo, 
EH  ^  sat  upon  his  seat  by  the  way  side  watching:  for 
his  heart  trembled  for  the  ark  of  God.  And  when  the 
man  cam.e  into  the  city,  and  told  it,  all  the  city  cried 

1  Better,  was  sitting. 

cause  of  their  symbolic  meaning.  Much  more  significant  was  the  tak- 
ing of  the  ark,  for  it  indicated  the  superiority  of  the  Philistine  deity, 
since,  in  effect,  the  God  of  Israel  was  a  prisoner.  _  Were  slain  liter- 
ally, died,  cf.  are  dead  v.  17,  where  Hebrew  word  is  the  same;  but  it 
is  evident  that  the  sons  of  Eli  did  not  die  a  natural  death.  They  were 
the  bearers  and  guardians  of  the  ark  and  presumably  fell  in  its  de- 
fense. The  prediction  of  the  man  of  God,  2 :  34,  is  thought  by  many 
to  be  based  upon  this  story.  In  this  passage  there  is  no  hint  that 
the  sons  of  Eli  met  a  fate  that  was  justly  due,  and  in  fulfilment  of 
predictions. 
The  death  of  Eli,  4:  12-18. 

1 2.  A  man  of  Benjamin.  In  the  days  before  the  telegraph,  and  in 
an  army  were  there  where  no  horsemen,  the  news  was  carried  by  the 
fleetest  runners,  2  Sam.  18  :  19.  The  same  day.  The  distance  was 
possibly  a  dozen  miles,  so  that  Shiloh  would  be  reached  by  a  good 
runner  in  a  couple  of  hours.  The  torn  garments  and  the  head  covered 
with  earth  were  common  signs  of  mourning  or  disaster.  Josh.  7  :  6, 
2  Sam.  1:2,  Neh.  9:1.  The  people  at  Shiloh  therefore  would  know 
that  Israel  had  been  defeated  as  soon  as  they  saw  the  runner  in  the 
distance. 

13.  By  the  way  side.  The  text  is  so  corrupt  that  it  can  scarcely  be 
translated.  G.  has  a  clearer  text,  EH  was  on  the  scat  by  tite  gate  watch- 
ing the  road.  In  both  texts  Eli's  blindness  is  ignored.  Yet  the  posi- 
tion described  is  natural.  Eli  was  anxious  about  the  ark.  Probably 
he  had  opposed  its  going  into  the  hopeless  struggle.  He  would  be 
concerned  to  hear  the  first  tidings  from  the  front,  and  thus  took  his 
place  so  that  a  messenger  could  not  pass  by  unnoticed,  for  the  blind 
priest  could  at  least  watch  with  his  ears.  And  told  it,  is  not  very  good 
English,  as  "it"  has  no  antecedent.  The  passage  should  be  trans- 
lated, now  the  man  had  come  to  the  city  to  spread  the  news.  The  phrase 
repeats  v.  1 2  in  part  to  explain  that  when  he  told  the  tale  of  disaster 
the  people  burst  out  into  a  cry  of  distress.  This  cry  first  informed 
the  blind  Eli  that  something  serious  had  happened. 

44 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


14.  out.  And  when  Eli  heard  the  noise  of  the  crying,  he 
said/  What  meaneth  the  noise  of  this  tumuh?    And 

15.  the  man  hasted,  and  came  and  told  EH.  Now  EU  was 
ninety  and  eight  years  old;  and  his  eyes  were  set,  that 

16.  he  could  not  see.  And  the  man  said  unto  EH,  I  am 
he  that  came  out  of  the  army,  and  I  fled  to-day  out  of 
the  army.    And  he  said,  How  went  the  matter,  my 

17.  son?  And  he  that  brought  the  tidings  answered  and 
said,  Israel  is  fled  before  the  Philistines,  and  there  hath 
been  also  a  great  slaughter  among  the  people,  and  thy 
two  sons  also,  Hophni  and  Phinehas,  are  dead,  and 

18.  the  ark  of  God  is  taken.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  he 
made  mention  of  the  ark  of  God,  that  he  fell  from  off 


G.  adds  to  the  men  who  stood  by  him. 


14.  The  seer  proceeds  at  once  to  ascertain  the  cause  of  the  uproar. 
The  messenger  was  brought  to  him  at  his  request.  Crying  and 
tumult  are  contrasted.  The  former  refers  to  the  shrieks  of  the  un- 
happy people;  the  latter  refers  to  the  general  state  of  disorder  which 
broke  out  in  the  city. 

Cf.  3:2.  This  description  of  Eli  has  no  point  here,  but  it  would 
come  in  very  well  with  v.  18.  His  age  and  infirmity  explain  the  man- 
ner of  his  death. 

16.  Army.  Read  with  G,  camp.  In  the  second  use  of  the  word, 
the  sense  is  the  line  of  battle,  a  body  of  troops  drawn  up  for  action. 
The  messenger  was  one  who  had  actually  been  in  the  fight.  Fled. 
In  V.  12  the  verb  ran  was  used.  The  more  specific  term  is  happy 
here  as  the  runner  confesses  that  he  was  one  of  the  fugitives  who  was 
flying  to  his  home,  v.  10. 

17.  The  report  of  the  fugitive  is  made  up  almost  verbatim  from  the 
description  of  the  catastrophe  in  v,  10  ff.  He  says  nothing  of  the  num- 
ber who  had  fallen,  because  that  could  not  have  been  known  till 
later. 

18.  The  ark  of  God.  Eli  was  not  so  much  affected  by  the  story 
of  the  usual  happenings  in  battle,  the  terrible  slaughter  of  the  Israel- 
ites, or  even  by  the  death  of  his  sons,  but  the  loss  of  the  ark  robbed 
the  temple  of  Shiloh  of  its  chief  element  of  influence,  and  the  people 
of  their  glory.  For  the  priest  was  as  superstitious  as  the  Philistines, 
and  felt  that  without    the    ark    there    could  hardly  be  any  God. 

45 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


his  seat  backward  by  the  side  of  the  gate,  and  his  neck 
brake,  and  he  died :  for  he  was  an  old  man,  and  heavy. 

19.  And  he  had  judged  Israel  ^  forty  years.  And  his 
daughter  in  law,  Phinehas'  wife,  was  with  child,  near 
to  be  delivered:  and  when  she  heard  the  tidings  that 
the  ark  of  God  was  taken,  and  that  her  father  in  law 
and  her  husband  were  dead,  she  bowed  herself  and 

20.  brought  forth;  for  her  pains  came  upon  her.^  And 
about  the  time  of  her  death  ^  the  women  that  stood  by 
her  said  unto  her.  Fear  not;  for  thou  hast  brought 
forth  a  son.    But  she  answered  not,  neither  did  she 

1  G.  twerUy.  ^  G.  and  in  her  crisis  she  died. 

By  the  side  of  the  gate  is  generally  misunderstood  and  so  mistrans- 
lated. Most  scholars  assume  a  corruption  of  the  text,  but  that  is 
unnecessary.  Yadh  does  mean  hand  or  side,  but  it  also  has  the  sense 
of  support,  and  so  here  the  post.  The  sense  then  is,  Eli  fell  of  his 
seat  hack-ward  away  from  the  gate  post.  Naturally  the  priest  had  been 
leaning  against  the  gate  post.  As  he  collapsed  from  the  shock,  he 
slipped  from  the  post  and  so  went  over  backwards,  and  broke  his 
neck.  Heavy  does  not  necessarily  imply  that  Eli  was  corpulent, 
but  only  that  he  lacked  suppleness  on  account  of  his  years.  We  have 
a  better  introduction  to  the  clause  following  if  we  render,  as  is  surely 
possible:  the  man  was  an  elder  and  honor  able  j  and  he  had  judged  Israel 
forty  years. 
The  death  of  Eli's  daughter  4  :  19-22. 

19.  Near  to  be  delivered.  The  whole  phrase  is  condensed  and 
obscure  in  the  original.  The  literal  sense  is:  pregnant  to  bring  forth. 
Since  the  heavy  tidings  brought  on  premature  travail  and  yet  the 
boy  was  born  alive,  the  above  rendering  must  be  correct  in  sense. 
The  Hebrew  idiom  would  be  preserved  better,  however,  by  a  phrase 
like:  was  in  the  late  stage  of  pregnancy. 

20.  About  the  time  of  her  death.  This  text  assumes  that  the 
travailing  woman  died  as  a  matter  of  course.  G.  is  better  as  we 
need  a  specific  statement  of  the  death  as  that  is  the  main  idea.  The 
passage  would  be  more  consistent  if  we  substituted  delivery  for  death. 
Fear  not.  The  attending  women  did  not  know  that  their  patient 
was  already  dead;  but  they  must  have  realized  her  extremity  as 
they  tried  to  arouse  her  by  the  good  news,  not  only  that  the  trial 

46 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


21.  regard  it.^  And  she  named  the  child  Ichabod,  saying, 
The  glory  is  departed  from  Israel:  because  the  ark  of 
God  was  taken,  and  because  of  her  father  in  law  and 

22.  her  husband.^  And  ^  she  said.  The  glory  is  departed 
from  Israel;  for  the  ark  of  God  is  taken. 

5.  Now  the  Philistines  had  taken  the  ark  of  God,  and 

1  Lacking  in  G.  2  Better,  they. 

was  over,  but  that  she  had  born  a  son,  the  desideratum  of  every 
Hebrew  mother. 

21.  She  named.  The  pronoun  can  only  refer  to  the  mother.  As 
she  was  already  dead,  unless  indeed  delivery  be  read  in  v.  20,  not 
merely  "unconscious"  as  H.  P.  Smith  puts  it,  she  must  have  named 
the  child  before  his  birth.  We  may  render,  however,  they  named, 
the  name  being  given  by  the  women  in  attendance.  Ichabod.  The 
text  gives  a  free  interpretation  of  the  name,  which  really  means 
there  is  no  glory,  and  so  the  glory  is  gone.  With  G.  we  must  omit 
all  of  the  verse  after  the  child's  name,  for  the  text  shows  amphfication 
and  repetition.  The  glory  of  Israel  was  neither  Eli  nor  Phinehas, 
but  the  ark  of  God,  and  so  v.  22  gives  the  true  reason  for  the  name. 
Ichabod  was  not  a  person  of  any  importance,  for  he  is  mentioned 
but  once  elsewhere,  14  :  3,  and  then  only  in  connection  with  his 
older  brother,  Ahijah. 

5  f .  The  captured  ark  carries  disaster  wherever  it  goes  among  the 
Philistines,  and  after  vain  conferences  with  the  five  lords,  the  priests 
and  diviners  advise  a  plan  to  placate  Jahveh,  and  to  ascertain 
whether  he  wishes  the  ark  returned.  In  accordance  with  this  scheme, 
the  ark  is  carried  back  to  the  borders  of  Israel.  The  passage  contains 
many  difficulties;  as  the  text  stands — and  the  matter  is  still  more 
decisive  in  G. — there  were  three  disasters  which  followed  the  taking 
of  the  ark,  the  demolition  of  the  image  of  Dagon,  the  bubonic  plague, 
and  the  devastation  of  mice.  But  the  mice  are  only  mentioned  in 
connection  with  the  devices  proposed  to  placate  Jahveh.  Ch.  5  re- 
lates the  disasters,  and  ch.  6  the  priests'  plan  for  relief.  If  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  crops  by  mice  was  an  original  part  of  the  story,  the  account 
of  their  operations  should  have  been  in  c.  5  in  connection  with  the 
other  disasters.  It  is  well  known  that  field  mice  may  stand  as  the 
symbol  of  a  plague,  and  modem  science  has  shown  that  rats  actually 
carry  the  bubonic  plague  {Harper's  Magazine,  November,  191 2). 
Hence  some  scholars  hold  that  the  mice  do  not  represent  a  third 
calamity,  but  are  to  be  interpreted  symbolically.  But  in  that  case 
it  is  difficult  to  see  why  the  guilt  offering  should  comprise  both  im- 

47 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


2.  they  brought  it  from  Eben-ezer  unto  Ashdod.    And 
the  Phihstines  took  the  ark  of  God,  and  brought  it 

3.  into  the  house  of  Dagon,  and  set  it  by  Dagon.    And 
when  they  of  Ashdod  arose  early  on  the  morrow, 


ages  of  the  tumors  and  of  the  mice,  nor  why  it  should  be  said  that 
atonement  was  necessary  for  the  people,  the  gods  and  the  land.  It 
is  better  radically  to  emend  the  text  and  excise  all  references  to  the 
mice,  or  else  to  hold  to  the  three  forms  of  disaster.  From  a  hint  in 
G.  it  is  possible  that  the  failure  of  the  lords  to  accomplish  any  allevi- 
ation of  the  plague  was  followed  by  an  adequate  account  of  the  plague 
of  mice,  an  account  of  which  we  have  now  only  the  fragment  in  G. 
(see  note  on  6:  i).  In  that  case  the  story  would  be  that  when  one 
evil  failed  to  bring  about  the  return  of  the  ark  another  was  inflicted, 
this  course  continuing  until  the  desired  end  was  attained,  exactly 
along  the  lines  of  the  plagues  in  Egypt  to  which  reference  is  made  in 
6  :6. 
The  ark  in  the  temple  of  Dagon,  5  :  1-5 

1.  Now.  The  Hebrew  idiom  shows  the  taking  up  of  a  thread  of  the 
story  temporarily  dropped.  This  section  goes  back  to  4  :  11.  The 
author  first  described  the  effect  of  the  loss  of  the  ark  among  the  He- 
brews, and  now  relates  the  fortunes  of  the  Philistines  who  had  the  ark 
in  their  possession.  Taken  in  the  sense  of  captured.  Ashdod  was  one 
of  the  five  principal  cities  of  the  Philistines,  of  which  two  others,  Gath 
and  Ekron,  are  named  below,  vs.  8,  10,  and  all  are  enumerated  in 
6:17.  Since  the  ark  was  taken  there,  it  may  safely  be  surmised  that 
the  chief  temple  of  Dagon  was  in  that  city.  It  was  near  the  Mediterra- 
nean coast. 

2.  By  Dagon,  that  is  by  the  image  of  Dagon,  with  which  the  god 
is  identified.  So  the  Philistines  had  identified  the  ark  with  God,  4  :  7. 
Dagon  appears  to  be  the  national  God  of  the  Philistines,  cf.  Judg- 
16  :  23.  The  temple  of  Dagon  was  still  standing  many  centuries  later, 
I  Mace.  10  :  ?)2>- 

3.  On  the  morrow.  In  place  of  this  the  G.  reads,  and  they  came 
into  the  honse  of  Dagon  and  looked.  Presumably  this  temple,  like  that 
of  Shiloh,  was  opened  every  morning  by  the  resident  priests,  although 
the  Greek  text  implies  that  the  townspeople  first  discovered  the  down- 
fall of  their  god.  Upon  his  face.  The  detailed  description  means  that 
the  image  of  Dagon  was  doing  obeisance  before  the  ark  as  a  subject 
would  to  his  king.  The  point  is  that  Dagon  is  doing  homage  to  Jah- 
veh  and  so  recognizing  his  superiority.  According  to  the  G. 
the  plague  is  described  as  breaking  out  now,  coincident  with  the  first 
humiliation  of  Dagon. 

48 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


behold,  Dagon  was  fallen  upon  his  face  to  the  ground 
before  the  ark  of  the  Lord.    And  they  took  Dagon, 

4.  and  set  him  in  his  place  again.  And  when  they  arose 
early  on  the  morrow  morning,  behold,  Dagon  was 
fallen  upon  his  face  to  the  ground  before  the  ark  of  the 
Lord;  and  the  head  of  Dagon  and  both  the  palms  of 
his  hands  lay  cut  off  upon  the  threshold;  only  the  stump 

5.  of  Dagon  was  left  to  him.  Therefore  neither  the  priests 
of  Dagon,  nor  any  that  come  into  Dagon's  house, 
tread  on  the  threshold  of  Dagon  in  Ashdod,  unto  this 
day. 

4.  The  second  calamity  which  befell  the  god  the  next  night  is  not 
clear.  We  cannot  ignore  an  interesting  reading  in  G.:  the  head  of 
Dagon  aiid  the  soles  of  both  feet  had  been  taken  to  the  front  of  the  dwelling, 
and  the  palms  of  both  hands  had  fallen  upon  the  porch.  This  is  a  more 
suitable  text,  as  it  completes  the  account  of  the  damage  to  the  idol. 
The  last  clause  of  the  Heb.  text  is  very  obscure.  The  English  render- 
ing is  a  free  interpretation.  The  text  has,  only  Dagon  was  left  upon  it, 
i.  e.,  Dagon,  and  this  is  meaningless.  From  the  damage  described, 
especially  in  the  fuller  Greek  text,  we  expect  something  like  only  the 
trunk  was  left  to  him.  The  sure  conclusion  is  that  the  image  of  Dagon 
was  badly  damaged. 

5.  From  this  accident  a  new  rite  arises  among  the  Philistine  wor- 
shippers. The  threshhold  of  the  temple  upon  which  the  hands  of 
Dagon  had  fallen  became  sacred,  and  was  never  more  trod  upon,  cf. 
Zeph.  1:9.    G.  adds:  but  they  step  clear  over  it. 

It  is  tempting  to  be  less  discreet  than  most  commentators  and  to 
seek  the  cause  of  these  accidents  to  Dagon,  supposing  that  the  story 
relates  a  real  occurrence.  The  Philistines  explain  them  as  the  result 
of  Jahveh's  displeasure  at  the  imprisonment  of  that  which  they  iden- 
tify with  him,  v.  7,  and  doubtless  the  Hebrews  would  have  given 
the  same  interpretation.  The  modern  mind,  however,  looks  upon  God 
as  too  spiritual  a  being  to  be  committing  material  depredations  upon 
the  image  of  a  heathen  god.  It  would  rejoice  the  Hebrews  to  know 
that  Dagon  prostrated  himself  before  the  ark,  but  the  God  of  Israel 
could  hardly  feel  satisfaction  in  the  homage  of  an  idol. 

Another  explanation  at  least  is  available.  We  note  that  the  dam- 
age was  always  done  in  the  night.  If  we  may  trust  the  G.,  in  v.  3  (see 
note),  the  temple  was  left  unguarded  during  the  night.    As  the  result 

49 


5:6  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


6.  But  the  hand  of  the  Lord  was  heavy  upon  them  of 
Ashdod,  and  he  destroyed  them,  and  smote  them  with 

7.  tumours,  even  Ashdod  and  the  borders  thereof.  And 
when  the  men  of  Ashdod  saw  that  it  was  so,  they  said, 
The  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  shall  not  abide  with  us: 
for  his  hand  is  sore  upon  us,  and  upon  Dagon  our 


of  the  Philistine  victory  at  Eben-ezer,  many  thousands  of  Israelites 
were  slain,  and  certainly  many  hundreds  must  have  been  taken  as 
prisoners,  for  captives  were  always  desirable  booty  in  war  as  they 
sold  readily  as  slaves.  Most  of  these  prisoners  would  be  taken  to 
Ashdod,  as  that  city  was  apparently  the  headquarters  of  the  army 
which  had  fought  Israel. 

To  the  Hebrews  the  virtual  imprisonment  of  Jahveh  in  the  temple 
of  Dagon  was  a  bitter  fact,  but  it  was  a  fact  whose  bitterness  could 
be  relieved  by  a  daring  spirit.  So  some  Israelite  entered  the  temple  by 
night  ^  and  reversed  the  position  of  the  gods,  leaving  Dagon  in  the 
act  of  doing  homage  to  Jahveh,  and  when  that  damage  was  easily 
undone,  the  sacred  idol  was  visited  again,  and  there  was  left  a  mere 
inglorious  trunk.  So  the  Philistines  were  impressed  with  the  power 
of  the  God  of  Israel,  and  the  way  was  prepared  for  the  ultimate 
return  of  the  ark.  What  the  armies  of  Israel  could  not  do,  a  single 
prisoner  in  a  foreign  land,  fired  by  zeal  for  his  God  could  do. 

A  plague  breaks  out  wherever  the  ark  is  taken,  5  :  6-12. 

6.  Destroyed  them  is  too  strong,  and  leads  to  an  anticlimax,  for 
then  there  would  be  nothing  left;  the  word  really  means,  he  worked 
havoc  among  them.  Tumours.  In  late  Hebrew  the  word  so  rendered 
meant  haemerrhoids,  and  is  so  interpreted  in  some  texts  of  the  G. 
The  word  became  indelicate,  as  such  words  always  do  in  time,  and 
the  Hebrews  substituted  in  reading  the  innocent  word  tumours.  It 
is  evident,  however,  that  this  tradition  is  wrong,  for  the  whole  passage 
can  only  be  satisfied  by  supposing  a  highly  contagious  and  fatal 
disease,  and  there  is  good  reason  to  accept  the  conjecture  that  it  was 
the  terrible  bubonic  plague  which  caused  such  havoc  in  Philistia. 
The  borders.  The  pestilence  quickly  spread  to  the  suburbs  of 
Ashdod. 

7.  The  people  assume  naturally  that  the  plague  was  inflicted  by 
Jahveh  because  of  the  ark;  it  would  therefore  follow  that  relief 
could  only  be  found  by  getting  rid  of  the  ark. 

1  It  was  at  night  that  the  priests  of  Bel  entered  the  temple  and  removed  the  food 
placed  before  the  image  by  the  worshippers  so  as  to  make  the  people  believe  that  the 
god  ate  it,  a  trick  cleverly  exposed  by  Daniel  {Bel  and  the  Dragon). 

50 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  5:10 


8.  god.  They  sent  therefore  and  gathered  all  the  lords 
of  the  Philistines  unto  them^  and  said,  What  shall  we 
do  with  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel?  And  ^  they 
answered,  Let  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  be  carried 
about  unto  ^  Gath.    And  they  carried  the  ark  of  the 

9.  God  of  Israel  about  ^  thither.  And  it  was  so,  that, 
after  they  had  carried  it  about,  the  hand  of  the  Lord 
was  against  the  city  with  a  very  great  discomfiture: 
and  he  smote  the  men  of  the  city,  both  small  and 

10.  great,  and  tumours  brake  out  upon  them.  So  they 
sent  the  ark  of  God  to  Ekron.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as 
the  ark  of  God  came  to  Ekron,  that  the  Ekronites 
cried  out,  saying,  They  have  brought  about  the  ark  of 
the  God  of  Israel  to  ^  us,  to  slay  ^  us  and  ^  our  people. 

1  G.  the  Gillites.  2  g.  us.  s  g.  unto  Gath. 

8.  The  lords,  for  which  G.  uses  the  Persian  term  satraps.  There 
were  five  of  these  lords,  Josh.  13  :  3,  Judg.  3  :  3,  i  Sam.  6  :  16, 18.  As 
there  were  five  chief  PhiUstine  cities,  Ashdad,  Gaza,  Ashkelon,  Gath 
and  Ekron,  it  is  plain  that  the  government  of  Philistia  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  chiefs  of  the  confederated  cities.  According  to  the  prob- 
ably correct  Greek  text,  the  people  of  Gath  themselves  proposed 
to  undertake  the  custody  of  the  captured  ark.  They  had  no  fear 
and  coveted  the  honor  of  holding  the  trophy.  Gath  was  some  dis- 
tance south  of  Ashdod,  and  the  idea  may  have  been  that  the  ark 
would  be  the  less  potent  for  harm  the  further  away  it  was  from  Shiloh. 

9.  The  same  disease  straightway  broke  out  among  the  Gittites, 
for  some  of  those  who  had  carried  the  ark  from  Ashdod  were  already 
infected  with  the  disease,  and  it  spread  naturally. 

10.  Ekron  was  the  nearest  to  Shiloh  of  the  five  Philistine  cities, 
and  it  appears  that  the  afflicted  people  were  already  working  the  ark 
back  towards  its  home.  From  the  distressful  protest  of  the  Ekronites, 
it  is  evident  that  they  had  not  volunteered  to  receive  the  ark.  Its 
bad  repute  was  already  too  well  known.  To  us.  The  Hebrew  to  me 
indicates  that  the  protest  was  voiced  by  the  lord  of  Ekron,  and  not 
by  the  mass  of  the  people.  R.  V.  follows  the  Greek,  and  that  is 
necessary  to  be  consistent  with  the  term  Ekronites,  for  which  we 
should  otherwise  have  to  read  the  lord  of  Ekron. 

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THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


11.  They  sent  therefore  and  gathered  together  all  the 
lords  of  the  Philistines,  and  they  said,  Send  away  the 
ark  of  the  God  of  Israel,  and  let  it  go  again  to  its  own 
place,  that  it  slay  ^  us  not,  and  ^  our  people:  for  there 
was  a  deadly  discomfiture  throughout  all  the  city;  ^ 

12.  the  hand  of  God  was  very  heavy  there.  And  the  men 
that  died  not  were  smitten  with  the  tumours:  and  the 
cry  of  the  city  went  up  to  heaven. 

1  Heb.  me.        ^  jjeb.  my.        ^  G.  when  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  came  there. 

11.  The  Ekronites  feared  that  the  plague  would  break  out  among 
them  now  that  the  ark  was  in  their  city,  and  so  the  chief  council 
was  again  summoned,  they  alone  having  adequate  authority,  and  the 
people  of  Ekron  begged  that  the  ark  be  sent  back  to  Israel,  making 
a  definite  proposal  in  place  of  the  general  inquiry  of  v.  8.  Their 
fears  were  realized  promptly,  for  plague  and  panic  at  once  broke  loose. 
Deadly  discomfiture,  literally  a  panic  of  death,  i.  e.,  a  panic  caused 
by  the  appalling  number  of  deaths. 

12.  The  meaning  is  that  everybody  was  taken  with  the  disease. 
Many  died,  and  even  those  who  escaped  death  were  nevertheless 
afflicted  with  the  dread  disease.  To  heaven  cf.  to  God,  Ex.  2  :  23, 
where  the  meaning  is,  so  that  God  heard  it,  and  took  measures  for 
relief.  Such  a  sense  would  be  unsuitable  here,  as  Jahveh  could  not 
be  supposed  to  act  for  the  Philistines.  The  meaning  can  only  be 
that  the  anguished  cry  of  the  Ekronites  was  so  loud  that  it  could  be 
heard  in  heaven. 

A  further  plague  and  the  return  of  the  ark,  6-7  :  i 
The  Philistines  hold  a  council  and  by  the  advice  of  their  religious 
leaders  the  ark  with  suitable  trespass-offerings  is  placed  at  the  whim 
of  a  pair  of  unbroken  cattle.  It  is  carried  first  to  Beth-shemesh 
where  it  is  received  with  joy;  but  soon  the  plague  breaks  out  there, 
and  the  Beth-shemites  pass  the  ark  on  to  Kiriath-jearim,  where 
Eleazer  is  consecrated  as  its  custodian,  and  where  it  remained  for 
many  years  until  David  removed  it  to  Jerusalem. 

This  chapter  is  full  of  difiiculties.  The  text  is  unusually  corrupt, 
though  some  important  restorations  may  be  made  on  the  basis  of 
the  G.  There  are  some  inconsistencies,  especially  in  regard  to  the 
number  of  mice,  five,  according  to  v.  4;  but  one  for  every  town  and 
village,  according  to  v.  18.  The  introduction  of  the  Levites,  v.  15, 
indicates  that  the  passage  has  been  edited  by  late  hands.  The  pas- 
sage is  the  natural  sequel  to  ch.  5,  and  yet  the  connection  is  poor. 

52 


THE   FIRST   BOOK   OF   SAMUEL  6:4 

6.  And  the  ark  of  the  Lord  was  in  the  country  of  the 

2.  PhiHstines  seven  months.  And  the  Philistines  called 
for  the  priests  and  the  diviners,  saying,  What  shall 
we  do  with  the  ark  of  the  Lord?  shew  us  wherewith 

3.  we  shall  send  it  to  its  place.  And  they  said.  If  ye  send 
away  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel,  send  it  not  empty; 
but  in  any  wise  return  him  a  guilt  offering:  then  ye 
shall  be  healed,  and  it  shall  be  known  to  you  why  his 

4.  hand  is  not  removed  from  you.    Then  said  they,  What 

For  there  is  in  our  text  no  reference  to  the  council  called  in  5  :  11, 
V.  I  seems  to  separate  the  two  sections.  In  ch.  5:11  it  is  certain 
that  the  people  believe  the  ark  the  cause  of  the  plague,  and  have 
determined  that  the  lords  must  send  it  back.  In  ch.  6  the  return  is 
an  open  question.  The  difl&culty  would  be  relieved  if  we  assumed 
that  it  was  the  lords  who  consulted  the  priests. 

1 .  Seven  months  indicates  the  time  from  the  capture  of  the  ark  to 
its  return.  To  this  v.  the  G.  adds,  and  their  land  swarmed  with  mice. 
This  introduces  a  second  plague,  and  prepares  the  way  for  the  other- 
wise inexpHcable  offering  of  golden  mice  in  v.  4  flf.  It  makes  a  third 
disaster  resulting  from  the  indignity  to  the  ark.  This  may  explain 
the  passage  by  inferring  that  nothing  resulted  from  the  council  of 
5:11,  and  that  action  was  only  taken  when  the  second  plague  broke 
out.  The  bubonic  plague  had  been  confined  to  the  cities,  the  pest 
of  field  mice  spread  over  the  whole  country. 

2.  Philistines.  The  whole  people  act  now,  not  the  lords  as  in  ch.  5. 
They  had  been  summoned  and  had  accomplished  nothing;  therefore 
the  people  call  for  the  priests  and  the  diviners,  to  which  G.  adds 
enchanters,  to  learn  by  what  means  the  ark  could  be  sent  to  its  own 
land.    The  Philistine  diviners  were  famous,  Is.  2  :  6,  2  Kings  i  :  2. 

3.  Guilt  offering,  for  the  soothsayers  assume  that  the  Philistines 
have  committed  some  trespass  for  which  Jahveh  has  punished  them. 
When  Jahveh  is  placated,  the  people  will  be  cured  of  the  disease. 
When  his  hand  is  not  removed  from  you  is  unintelligible.  We  might 
follow  G.  whether  his  hmid  shall  be  removed  from  yoii,  which  is  con- 
sistent with  V.  9.  But  then  the  positive  prediction  ye  shall  be  healed 
becomes  impossible.  In  view  of  v.  9,  it  is  better  to  correct  more 
freely  and  render:  it  shall  be  known  to  you  whether  ye  shall  be  healed 
and  his  hand  removed  from  you.    That  alone  harmonizes  with  v.  5. 

4  f.  These  vs.  are  very  difficult.  It  is  best  to  correct  with  the 
partial  aid  of  G.  and  read  the  counsel  thus:  the  number  of  the  lords 

S3 


6:5  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


shall  be  the  guilt  offering  which  we  shall  return  to 
him?  And  they  said,  Five  golden  tumours/  and  five 
golden  mice/  according  to  the  number  of  the  lords  of 
the  PhiHstines:  for  one  plague  was  on  you  all/  and 

5.  on  your  lords.  Wherefore  ^  ye  shall  make  images  of 
your  tumours/  and  images  of  your  mice  that  mar  the 
land;  and  ye  shall  give  glory  unto  the  God  of  Israel: 
peradventure  he  will  lighten  his  hand  from  off  you, 
and  from  off  your  gods,  and  from  off  your  land. 

6.  WTierefore  then  do  ye  harden  your  hearts,  as  the 
Egyptians  and  Pharaoh  hardened  their  hearts?  when 
he  had  wrought  wonderfully  among  ^  them,  did  they 

7.  not  let   the  people  go,   and   they  departed?     Now 

1  Lacking  m  G.        2  with  G.  omit  all.        3  Lacking  in  G.       *  Better,  ruthlessly. 

of  the  Philistines  is  five;  five  golden  tumors;  for  there  is  a  single  plague 
to  you  and  to  your  lords;  and  golden  mice  like  the  mice  which  devastated 
your  land;  and  ye  shall  honor  the  God  of  Israel.  The  lords  are  repre- 
sentative of  the  whole  people,  so  that  the  five  tumors  will  suffice  as 
expiation  for  all.  The  number  of  the  mice  is  not  given  here,  but 
according  to  v.  18  there  would  be  very  many.  There  were  three 
features  in  the  devastation,  and  the  prescription  covers  all  points, 
the  tumors  to  relieve  the  disease,  the  mice  to  drive  off  the  plague, 
and  honor  to  the  offended  deity  that  Dagon  might  be  disturbed  no 
more.  Thus  we  are  in  a  position  to  understand  the  conclusion  that 
God's  heavy  hand  would  be  lightened  from  the  people,  their  god  and 
their  soil.  Images  of  a  disorder  were  supposed  to  be  efficacious  as  a 
means  of  relief;  so  Moses  made  a  brazen  serpent  to  cure  snake  bites, 
Num.  21  :  8  ff. 

6.  This  V.  sounds  more  like  an  utterance  of  the  Hebrews  than  of 
the  Philistines.  In  part,  however,  it  agrees  with  the  expressed  fear 
of  Jahveh  in  4  :  8.  But  it  exhorts  the  people  to  do  the  very  thing 
they  had  called  upon  the  holy  men  to  show  them  how  to  do.  The 
idea  is  that  the  Philistines  must  not  hold  back  as  the  Egyptians  did 
at  first  to  the  increase  of  their  woes;  but  as  the  Egyptians  finally 
saved  themselves  by  releasing  the  Israelites,  so  the  Philistines  must 
find  relief  by  sending  back  the  ark. 

7.  Another  feature  is  introduced  now,  the  object  being  to  see 
whether  Jahveh  desired  to  go  back  to  his  own  land.     A  new  cart  as 

54 


THE   FIRST   BOOK   OF   SAMUEL  6:  10 


therefore  take  and  prepare  you  a  new  cart,  and  two 
milch  kine,  on  which  there  hath  come  no  yoke,  and 
tie  the  kine  to  the  cart,  and  bring  their  calves  home 

8.  from  them :  and  take  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  and  lay  it 
upon  the  cart;  and  put  the  jewels  of  gold,  which  ye 
return  him  for  a  guilt  offering,  in  a  coffer  by  the  side 

g.  thereof;  and  send  it  away,  that  it  may  go.    And  see,  if 

it  goeth  up  by  the  way  of  its  own  border  to  Beth- 

shemesh,  then  he  hath  done  us  this  great  evil:  but  if 

not,  then  we  shall  know  that  it  is  not  his  hand  that 

10.  smote  us;  it  was  a  chance  that  happened  to  us.    And 

befits  the  dignity  of  a  God.  The  vehicle  must  be  one  not  profaned 
by  common  use.  Two  milch  kine.  Heifers  would  be  natural  save 
that  the  test  required  cows  with  young.  The  choosing  of  unprofaned 
cattle  is  indicated  in  the  qualification,  on  which  there  had  come  no 
yoke.  Their  calves  were  to  be  taken  from  them,  and  shut  up  in  the 
stalls.  The  cattle  would  naturally  seek  their  young  even  when 
yoked  to  the  cart.  If  they  went  in  another  direction,  it  would  show 
the  guidance  of  Jahveh,  leading  the  ark  back  to  its  own  land. 

8.  Jewels  is  not  a  very  happy  description  of  the  tumors  and  mice, 
though  they  may  have  been  made  very  small.  The  Hebrew  term 
is  a  very  general  one  and  had  better  be  rendered  articles.  The  Hebrew 
must  be  rendered  in  the  coffer  at  its  side.  The  word  renedered  coffer 
is  found  nowhere  else,  and  the  meaning  is  uncertain.  From  the 
statement  here  it  would  appear  to  be  a  part  of  the  ark,  but  from 
vs.  II,  15  it  seems  to  be  distinct  from  the  ark  itself. 

9.  Care  is  taken  to  make  a  test  so  as  to  learn  positively  whether 
the  evil  had  come  from  Jahveh  or  was  an  ordinary  accident.  The 
sign  element  enters  into  the  Philistine  as  well  as  the  Hebrew  religious 
conceptions.  The  sign  was  in  the  course  taken  by  the  cattle,  and 
the  test  was  made  as  hard  as  possible.  For  Jahveh  to  get  the  ark 
back,  the  cattle  must  be  led  away  from  their  calves  and  so  contrary 
to  their  natural  inclination.  Beth-shemesh  was  a  border  town  and 
one  of  the  nearest  Jewish  cities,  but  it  was  not  on  the  way  towards 
Shiloh,  the  previous  seat  of  the  ark,  but  the  point  was  that  if  the 
ark  was  carried  towards  the  land  of  Israel,  it  would  be  Jahveh's 
work.    The  whole  country  was  Jahveh's,  not  merely  Shiloh. 

10  f.  There  verses  merely  state  that  the  Philistines  did  as  the 
soothsayers  had  directed,  and  repeat  almost  word  for  word  what 

55 


6:  II  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


the  men  did  so;  and  took  two  milch  kine,  and  tied  ^ 
them  to  the  cart,  and  shut  up  their  calves  at  home: 

11.  and  they  put  the  ark  of  the  Lord  upon  the  cart,  and 
the  coffer  with  ^  the  mice  of  gold  and  the  images  of 

12.  their  tumours.  And  the  kine  took  the  straight  way 
by  the  way  to  Beth-shemesh;  they  went  along  the 
high  way,^  lowing  as  they  went,  and  turned  not  aside 
to  the  right  hand  or  to  the  left;  and  the  lords  of  the 
Philistines  went  after  them  unto  the  border  of  Beth- 

13.  shemesh.  And  they  of  Beth-shemesh  were  reaping 
their  wheat  harvest  in  the  valley:  and  they  lifted  up 

1  Better,  harnessed  or  yoked.  -  Keb.  and.  ^  Heb.  one  high  way;  G.  has  this 

and  also  on  a  straight  road. 

has  gone  before.  The  differences  are  probably  accidental,  at  all 
events  they  do  not  affect  the  sense.  The  coffer  or  receptacle  is  men- 
tioned here  as  if  it  were  one  of  the  offerings,  for  the  rendering  with  the 
mice  of  gold  presupposes  an  emendation  of  the  text. 

12.  Straight  way  does  not  bring  out  the  true  force  of  the  original. 
There  was  hardly  a  straight  road;  moreover  the  "straight"  is  in 
the  verb  in  Hebrew.  We  should  render:  And  the  cattle  went  straight 
on  the  way  in  the  direction  of  Beth-shemesh.  The  point  is  abundantly 
emphasized  that  the  moment  they  were  loosed  the  kine  started 
directly  towards  Beth-shemesh,  and  did  not  reach  it  by  devious 
paths.  The  high  way.  The  term  is  more  specific  than  that  rendered 
way  above.  That  might  mean  direction  or  course;  here  we  have 
the  definite  term  high  way.  The  Hebrew  reads  on  one  road.  That 
again  emphasizes  the  sign  or  miracle,  for  it  stresses  the  fact  that  the 
kine  kept  to  the  direct  road,  never  wandering  off  even  though  they 
were  free  to  go  where  they  would.  Lowing  because  they  missed 
their  young  which  had  been  shut  up  in  the  stalls.  Went  after  them, 
or  were  following  them.  Their  object  was  to  keep  enough  in  the  back- 
ground not  to  control  the  direction  of  the  cattle,  and  still  to  be  able 
to  see  where  they  went.  Only  the  lords  are  mentioned  here,  but  as 
this  was  a  popular  movement,  it  seems  probable  that  some  of  the 
people  and  certainly  some  of  the  holy  men  accompanied  the  strange 
caravan.  The  border,  for  once  the  cattle  carry  the  ark  to  the  con- 
fines of  Israel,  the  sign  is  complete,  and  according  to  the  test  it  is 
proved  that  it  was  Jahveh's  hand  that  had  plagued  the  Philistines. 

13.  Wheat  harvest.    This  indicates  first  the  time,  about  the  first 

56 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  6:15 


their  eyes,  and  saw  the  ark,  and  rejoiced  to  see  it. 

14.  And  the  cart  came  into  the  field  of  Joshua  the  Beth- 
shemite,  and  stood  there,  where  there  was  a  great 
stone:  and  they  clave  the  wood  of  the  cart,  and  offered 
up   the  kine  for  a  burnt  offering  unto   the  Lord. 

15.  And  the  Levites  took  down  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  and 
the  coffer  that  was  with  it,  wherein  the  jewels  of  gold 
were,  and  put  them  on  the  great  stone :  and  the  men  of 
Beth-shemesh  offered  burnt  offerings  and  sacrificed 

of  June,  so  that  the  ark  had  been  captured  about  the  first  of  No- 
vember, V.  i;  and  second  it  explains  the  presense  of  a  large  number 
of  Beth-shemites  on  the  border.  The  towns  were  on  high  places 
for  better  protection,  but  the  harvest  brought  all  the  people  into 
the  valley.  Rejoiced.  If  we  recall  the  terrible  distress  produced 
by  the  loss  of  the  ark,  ch.  4,  it  will  be  easy  to  understand  the  joy 
at  its  return. 

14.  Field  of  Joshua.  It  is  not  easy  to  see  why  the  particular 
place  is  described,  for  Joshua  plays  no  special  part  in  the  story.  It 
might  be  clear  if  we  know  more  of  the  details.  Budde  goes  no  further 
than  to  note  that  Joshua  contains  the  divine  name  Jahveh,  implying 
that  Jahveh,  who  guided  the  ark  to  its  resting  place,  chose  the  land  of 
one  who  was  his  namesake.  Where  there  was  a  great  stone,  or  bet- 
ter, aiid  a  great  stone  was  there.  The  ark  was  guided  to  a  place  where 
there  was  a  great  stone,  and  so  plainly  suggesting  that  Jahveh 
desired  a  sacrifice.  We  lose  this  force  by  correcting  after  G.  as 
H.  P.  Smith  does,  they  set  a  great  stone  there.  God  provided  the  stone, 
as  he  had  once  provided  the  sacrifice,  Gen.  22  :  8.  A  great  stone  was 
an  altar  ready  made,  14  :  t,2>-  They  clave.  Most  commentators 
suppose  that  the  sacrifice  was  made  by  the  Beth-shemites,  and  v.  13 
does  so  imply.  But  the  sacrifice  of  the  Israelites  is  fully  described 
below,  and  if  our  text  is  to  be  trusted,  it  seems  an  appropriate  ending 
to  the  Phihstines'  return  of  the  ark,  that  they  should  have  offered 
a  sacrifice  to  the  God  whose  hand  had  been  heavy  upon  them,  and 
who  had  showed  his  power  by  leading  the  cattle  to  Beth-shemesh. 
Thus  they  would  comply  with  the  prescription  to  honor  the  God  of 
Israel,  v.  5,  and  then  they  would  be  free  to  return  home. 

15.  The  Levites.  The  mention  of  the  Levites  as  custodians  of  the 
ark  shows  a  later  hand.  The  first  part  of  the  verse  is  a  clumsy  inter- 
polation. We  are  told  that  the  Levites  took  the  ark  from  the  cart, 
which  had  already  been  split  and  burned  for  the  sacrifice,  v.  14. 

57 


6:i6  THE  FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


i6.  sacrifices  the  same  day  unto  the  Lord.  And  when  the 
five  lords  of  the  PhiHstines  had  seen  it,  they  returned 
to  Ekron  the  same  day. 

17.  And  these  are  the  golden  tumours  which  the  Philistines 
returned  for  a  guilt  offering  unto  the  Lord;  for  Ashdod 
one,  for  Gaza  one,  for  Ashkelon  one,  for  Gath  one, 

18.  for  Ekron  one;  and  the  golden  mice,  according  to  the 
number  of  all  the  cities  of  the  PhiHstines  belonging  to 
the  five  lords,  both  of  fenced  cities  and  of  country 
villages:  even  unto  the  great  stone, ^  whereon  they  set 
down  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  which  stone  remaineth  unto 

19.  this  day  in  the  field  of  Joshua  the  Beth-shemite.  And 
he  smote  of  the  men  of  Beth-shemesh,  because  they 
had  looked  into  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  even  he  smote 

1  Heb.  has  mourning,  an  obvious  error  from  confusing  similar  words. 

The  sacrifices  of  the  Beth-shemites  were  thank  offerings  for  the  re- 
turn of  the  ark,  and  these  were  not  the  same  as  those  described  in 
V.  13.  Budde  rejects  the  whole  of  v.  15  as  a  gloss,  in  which  case  the 
offering  of  v.  14  would  be  that  of  the  Beth-shemites, 

17,  So  far  as  we  know  only  three  cities  had  been  visited  by  the 
plague,  Ashdod,  Gath  and  Ekron,  The  plague  may,  of  course,  have 
reached  other  cities;  but  in  any  case,  whatever  offense  had  been 
committed  against  Jahveh  was  the  wrong  of  the  whole  people,  and 
so  each  chief  city  must  join  in  the  atonement. 

18,  There  was  a  gold  mouse  for  every  town  and  hamlet  of  the 
whole  Philistine  country,  so  that  the  number  must  have  been  very 
large.  The  great  stone  is  here  described  as  if  it  were  one  of  the  Phil- 
istine villages,  or  by  a  loose  construction  a  Philistine  boundary.  As 
a  matter  of  fact  this  stone  was  in  the  land  of  an  Israelite,  and  we 
can  only  get  sense  by  a  slight  change  of  the  text  so  as  to  read :  and  the 
great  stone,  upon  which  they  set  the  ark  of  Jahveh  is  to  this  day  a  witness 
in  the  field  of  Joshua  the  Beth-shcmitc.  The  stone  still  stood  in  its 
original  place  in  the  writer's  time,  and  naively  this  fact  is  assured  as 
proof  of  the  story.  Memorial  stones  as  witnesses  were  not  uncommon 
in  Hebrew  tales,  Gen.  31  :  52,  Josh.  24  :  27,  Is,  19  :  19  f, 

19,  Our  text  declares  that  Jahveh  smote  the  Beth-shemites  be- 
cause they  looked  into  the  ark.    But  there  is  no  evidence  that  such 

58 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  7:1 


of  the  people  seventy  men,  and  fifty  thousand  men: 
and   the   people   mourned,   because   the   Lord   had 

20.  smitten  the  people  with  a  great  slaughter.  And  the 
men  of  Beth-shemesh  said,  Who  is  able  to  stand  be- 
fore the  Lord,  this  holy  God?  and  to  whom  shall  he  ^ 

21.  go  up  from  us?  And  they  sent  messengers  to  the  in- 
habitants of  Kiriath-jearun,  saying.  The  Phihstines 
have  brought  again  the  ark  of  the  Lord;  come  ye 
down,  and  fetch  it  up  to  you. 

7.  And  the  men  of  Kiriath-jearim  came,  and  fetched  up 
the  ark  of  the  Lord,  and  brought  it  into  the  house  of 

1  G.  the  ark. 

an  act  was  sinful,  even  if  the  appeal  is  made  to  the  later  law.  More- 
over, the  repetition  of  smote  is  very  awkward.  The  true  text  has  been 
preserved  in  G.  and  runs:  And  the  sons  of  Jeconiah  did  not  rejoice 
with  the  men  of  Beth-shemesh  when  they  saw  the  ark  of  Jahveh  and  he 
smote  of  them,  i.  e.,  of  the  sons  of  Jeconiah.  Jeconiah  was  like  Joshua 
the  head  of  one  of  the  clans  of  Beth-shemesh.  For  some  reason  his 
family  did  not  share  the  joy  due  to  the  return  of  the  ark.  A  deadly 
blow  came  to  them,  presumably  the  contagious  disease  was  still 
carried  by  the  ark,  and  these  two  parts  are  explained  by  the  Hebrew 
writer  as  cause  and  effect.  Any  calamity  was  regarded  by  the  He- 
brews as  a  divine  chastisement  for  which  some  cause  must  be  found. 
It  appears  that  the  ark  was  regarded  as  potent  for  evil  as  well  as  for 
good,  cf.  2  Sam.  6  :  6  f.  Fifty  thousand  men  is  a  gloss,  due  to  some 
scribe  who  felt  that  the  death  of  seventy  men  was  an  insufiQcient 
punishment.  There  were  not  fifty  thousand  people  in  Beth-shemesh. 
Great  slaughter  does  not  require  more  than  seventy,  for  relatively 
to  the  population  the  loss  was  very  great;  the  family  of  Jeconiah 
must  have  been  practically  exterminated. 

20.  The  Beth-shemites  felt  about  the  ark  as  the  Philistines  had, 
and  as  the  latter  had  passed  it  along  from  town  to  town,  so  the  former 
send  to  the  men  of  Kiriath-jearim  to  ask  them  to  receive  the  dangerous 
treasure.  Kiriath-jearim  was  selected  because  it  was  near  at  hand. 
The  site  is  not  certain,  but  it  was  probably  but  a  few  miles  away. 

7:1.  Abinadab.  Nothing  further  is  known  about  him  or  his  son. 
Probably  the  house  of  Abinadab  was  chosen  because  it  was  on  a  hill, 
the  only  suitable  site  for  a  holy  place.  The  ark  must  have  its  proper 
custodian,  like  Samuel  and  the  sons  of  Eli  the  priest,  and  as  this 

59 


7:2  THE  FIRST   BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Abinadab  in  the  hill,  and  sanctified  Eleazar  his  son  to 
keep  ^  the  ark  of  the  Lord. 

3.  SmmieVs  War  on  the  Philistines,  7:  2-17 

2.  And  it  came  to  pass,  from  the  day  that  the  ark  abode 
in  Kiriath-jearim,  that  the  time  was  long;  for  it  was 
twenty  years:  and  all  the  house  of  Israel  lamented 

1  Or  guard. 

was  a  holy  office,  there  was  some  ceremony  by  which  the  keeper  of 
the  ark  was  consecrated.  It  is  purely  gratuitous  to  assume  that 
Eleazar  was  a  Levite,  an  idea  which  belongs  to  far  later  times.  The 
house  of  Abinadab  becomes  now  a  sort  of  local  sanctuary,  like  the 
house  of  Micah  earlier,  Judg.  17.  The  ark  remained  at  this  place 
until  it  was  taken  to  Jerusalem  by  David,  2  Sam.  6,  an  event  beauti- 
fully described  in  Ps.  132. 

Under  Samuel's  direction  the  Israelities  are  freed  from  the  Philis- 
tine oppression.  Samuel  is  a  priest  and  judge,  and  in  effect  a  na- 
tional dictator,  a  conception  for  which  the  way  is  prepared  in  the 
present  form  of  ch.  3.  Israel  here  acts  as  a  nation.  The  defeat 
of  the  Philistines  is  complete  and  permanent  and  is  accomplished 
by  direct  divine  act,  and  not  by  arms.  The  preparation  of  the  people 
is  not  military  but  religious.  In  many  respects  it  is  much  like 
Josh.  1-12. 

The  section  stands  quite  by  itself,  as  it  ignores  the  devastation  of 
Philistia  in  ch.  4-6,  and  the  appointment  of  Saul  as  king,  for  here 
Samuel  judges  Israel  all  his  life.  The  passage  is  one  of  the  stories, 
preserved  in  a  late  form,  told  to  glorify  the  career  of  Samuel.  As  a 
historical  source  the  story  is  of  little  help.  The  best  we  could  make 
of  it  is  that  a  local  and  temporary  check  has  been  magnified  into  a 
national  and  permanent  overthrow  of  the  Philistines,  such  as  was 
not  accomplished  until  the  time  of  David. 

2.  Twenty  years.  This  verse  seems  to  be  an  editorial  note  to 
connect  the  narrative  following  with  the  preceding  section.  The 
meaning  seems  to  be  that  Samuel's  conflict  with  the  Philistines  took 
place  twenty  years  after  the  depositing  of  the  ark  in  Kiriath-jearim. 
Lamented  is  difficult.  The  Greek  offers  looked  or  turned  in  peace. 
To  harmonize  with  v.  3,  we  must  suppose  there  had  been  an  era  of 
apostacy,  during  which  Israel  had  gotten  along  badly,  and  that 
now  they  lament  because  they  are  not  receiving  help  from  their 
God. 

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THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


after  the  Lord.  And  Samuel  spake  unto  all  the  house 
of  Israel,  saying,  If  ye  do  return  unto  the  Lord  with 
all  your  heart,  then  put  away  the  strange  gods  and  the 
Ashtaroth  from  among  you,  and  prepare  your  hearts 
unto  the  Lord,  and  serve  him  only:  and  he  will  deUver 
you  out  of  the  hand  of  the  PhiHstines.  Then  the 
children  of  Israel  did  put  away  the  Baalim  and  the 
Ashtaroth,  and  served  the  Lord  only. 
And  Samuel  said.  Gather  all  Israel  to  Mizpah,  and  I 


3.  This  V.  connects  directly  with  4  :  la.  All  the  house  of  Israel. 
There  was  evidently  some  sort  of  gathering,  of  which  Samuel  takes 
advantage  to  address  the  people,  exhorting  them  to  abandon  the 
worship  of  all  gods  but  Jahveh  and  expressing  the  usual  theological 
conception  that  God  would  only  help  his  people  when  they  were 
faithful  to  him.  Ashtaroth  is  the  plural  form  of  an  ancient  Semitic 
deity,  now  well  known  under  the  Assyrian  form  as  Ishtar.  The  cult 
of  this  god  extended  to  the  west,  as  we  know  from  the  Phoenician 
name  Astarte.  In  our  text  the  term  probably  covers  several  local 
deities.  Out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines.  These  words  explain  the 
story  we  have  in  this  section.  The  people  were  under  the  domination 
of  their  western  neighbors,  and  the  lamenting  of  v.  2  is  due  to  their 
feeling  that  God  was  not  helping  them  in  their  distress. 

4.  Put  away.  The  words  imply  an  extensive  religious  reforma- 
tion. The  Israelites  had  recently  come  into  Canaan,  and  naturally 
felt  that  they  must  placate  the  gods  of  the  land,  called  Baalim  and 
Astaroth,  cf.  2  Ki.  17  :  25  flf.  Now  they  must  have  destroyed  the 
shrines  at  which  these  deities  had  been  worshipped.  Baalim  is  the 
plural  form  of  the  god  Baal  or  Bel,  another  ancient  Semitic  deity 
whose  cult  was  extensive  in  Canaan.  The  term  corresponds  to  the 
general  expression  strange  gods  of  v.  3. 

5.  After  the  reform  was  completed,  Samuel  directs  all  the  people 
to  assemble  in  order  that  they  might  worship  Jahveh  alone  by  such 
rites  as  would  be  certain  to  win  his  favor.  Mizpah  has  been  located 
about  five  miles  north  of  Jerusalem,  so  that  the  assembly  was  held  in 
the  hill  country,  doubtless  because  it  was  safer.  Judging  from  cc. 
1-3,  Shiloh  would  have  been  the  natural  meeting  place  for  a  religious 
gathering;  but  we  may  assume  either  that  Shiloh  had  been  destroyed 
by  the  Philistines,  or  that  the  loss  of  the  ark  had  robbed  that  sanctu- 
ary of  its  preeminence.    However,  it  is  to  be  noted  that  Mizpah  was 

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6.  will  pray  for  you  unto  the  Lord.  And  they  gathered 
together  to  Mizpah,  and  drew  water,  and  poured  it 
out  ^  before  the  Lord,  and  fasted  on  that  day,  and 
said  there,^  We  have  sinned  against  the  Lord.    And 

7.  Samuel  judged  the  children  of  Israel  in  Mizpah.  And 
when  the  Philistines  heard  that  the  children  of  Israel 
were  gathered  together  to  Mizpah,  the  lords  of  the 
Philistines  went  up  against  Israel.  And  when  the 
children  of  Israel  heard  it,  they  were  afraid  of  the 

8.  Philistines.  And  the  children  of  Israel  said  to  Samuel, 
Cease  not  to  cry  unto  the  Lord  our  God  for  us,  that 

1  G.  adds,  upon  the  ground.  2  Qmit  there  after  G. 


the  sanctuary  at  which   the  great   assembly  was  held  to  devise  a 
suitable  punishment  for  the  Benjamites,  Judg.  20. 

6.  Poured  it  out.  A  libation  of  blood,  or  symbolically  of  wine, 
was  common,  but  the  use  of  water  is  unknown  in  the  Old  Testament 
except  in  this  passage,  though  we  may  compare  David's  pouring 
out  the  water  from  the  Bethlehem  well,  2  Sam.  23  :  16.  Libations  of 
water  were  common  among  the  Babylonians.  As  the  rite  is  associated 
with  fasting  and  confession,  its  significance  was  penitential.  Sinned^ 
not  here  by  the  violation  of  moral  precepts,  but  by  the  violation  of 
the  first  commandment  in  worshipping  the  gods  of  Canaan.  Samuel 
judged.  This  phrase  does  not  usually  refer  to  a  temporary  act,  but 
to  a  protracted  state  of  life,  cf.  v.  15.  The  sentence  seems  out  of 
place  here.  The  explanation  would  be  that  during  the  days  of  the 
assembly,  Samuel  held  court  and  settled  the  disagreements  which 
arose  among  the  people. 

7.  Philistines  heard.  The  gathering  of  a  large  number  of  people 
in  one  place  had  the  same  direful  significance  that  mobilization  has 
in  Europe  to-day.  If  we  assume  that  Israel  was  at  the  time  practic- 
ally a  subject  state,  the  assembly  would  be  interpreted  as  an  up- 
rising against  the  sovereign  power.  Lords  of  the  Philistines  refers 
to  the  chiefs  of  the  five  principal  cities,  6  :  17  f.,  each  chief  being  fol- 
lowed by  a  band  of  warriors. 

8.  Cease  not.  These  words  carry  us  back  to  Samuel's  promise 
to  pray  for  the  people,  v.  5.  In  their  peril  they  beseech  the  prophet 
to  keep  up  prayer  on  their  behalf  continually.    We  are  reminded  of 

62 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


he  will  save  us  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines. 

9.  And  Samuel  took  a  sucking  lamb,  and  offered  it  for  a 

whole  burnt  offering  unto  the  Lord:  and  Samuel  cried 

unto  the  Lord  for  Israel;  and  the  Lord  answered  him. 

10.  And  as  Samuel  was  offering  up  the  burnt  offering,  the 
PhiHstines  drew  near  to  battle  against  Israel:  but  the 
Lord  thundered  with  a  great  thunder  ^  on  that  day 
upon   the    Philistines,   and    discomfited    them;    and 

11.  they   were    smitten    down   before   Israel.     And    the 

1  Heb.  sound. 

the  battle  with  the  Amalekites  in  which  Israel  was  victorious  only 
when  Moses  was  in  the  attitude  of  prayer,  Ex.  17  :  11. 

9.  Sucking  lamb  corresponds  to  the  yearling  lamb  which  was  pre- 
scribed for  a  sacrifice  in  the  Law,  Ex.  29  :  38.  Whole  burnt  ofifering. 
Usually  when  an  animal  was  sacrificed,  it  was  eaten  in  part  or  wholly 
by  the  worshippers;  but  when  the  offering  was  to  be  particularly 
impressive,  the  whole  was  consumed  on  the  altar,  that  is,  given  to 
God.  The  object  was  probably  to  make  the  strongest  possible  ap- 
peal for  his  favor.  Answered,  not  in  the  sense  in  which  we  speak  of 
the  answer  to  prayer,  but  in  a  very  literal  sense,  in  the  sound  of  the 
thunder. 

10.  There  are  three  remarkable  coincidences,  however  they  may 
be  explained,  the  offering  of  the  sacrifice,  the  hostile  approach  of  the 
Philistines,  and  the  oncoming  of  a  furious  thunderstorm.  The  quali- 
fication, with  a  great  sound  indicates  one  of  those  blinding,  bewilder- 
ing and  terrifying  thunderstorms  which  sometimes  sweep  over  Pales- 
tine as  well  as  over  other  parts  of  the  world.  That  the  thunder- 
storm was  regarded  as  a  special  manifestation  of  Jahveh  is  clear 
from  Ps.  29,  as  well  as  from  numerous  other  passages.  Discomfited, 
or  threw  them  into  a  panic.  The  Hebrew  word  is  interesting  as  it 
suggests  a  state  of  confusion  especially  as  the  result  of  noise.  Were 
smitten  down  before  Israel  is  usually  referred  to  the  effects  of  the 
storm,  the  part  of  the  Israelites  coming  later.  But  such  an  interpre- 
tation strains  language  pretty  hard,  and  these  words  are  best  explained 
as  giving  the  general  result  of  the  battle,  Israel's  part  in  which  is 
described  later. 

11.  Pursued.  The  Hebrews  were  apparently  not  affected  by  the 
storm.  Thunder  storms  often  sweep  over  a  narrow  course,  and 
Israel  may  have  been  out  of  the  center  of  disturbance;  or  they  may 

63 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


men  of  Israel  went  out  of  Mizpah,  and  pursued  the 
Philistines,  and  smote  them,  until  they  came  under  ^ 

12.  Beth-car.  Then  Samuel  took  a  stone,  and  set  it  be- 
tween Mizpah  and  Shen,  and  called  the  name  of  it 
Eben-ezer,  saying,  Hitherto  hath  the  Lord  helped 

13.  us.  So  the  Philistines  were  subdued,  and  they  came 
no  more  within  the  border  of  Israel:  and  the  hand  of 
the  Lord  was  against  the  Philistines  all  the  days  of 

14.  Samuel.  And  the  cities  which  the  PhiHstines  had 
taken  from  Israel  were  restored  to  Israel,  from  Ekron 
even  unto  Gath;  and  the  border  thereof  did  Israel 
deliver  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines.    And  there 

1  Better,  below. 

have  been  spared  any  panic  because  the  thunder  was  to  them  the 
voice  of  God  speaking  in  their  behalf.  Beth-car  is  mentioned  as  a 
well  known  place,  and  yet  the  name  does  not  occur  elsewhere.  Klos- 
termann  proposed  Beth-horon,  the  scene  of  Joshua's  great  victory,  a 
battle  in  which  a  storm  also  played  a  conspicuous  part;  Josh. 
10  :  10  f. 

12.  Eben-ezer  means  stone  of  help  and  therefore  the  name  is  appro- 
priate here.  The  name,  however,  was  given  to  the  scene  of  the  battle 
with  the  Philistines  which  took  place  twenty  years  before,  4:1. 

13.  This  verse  shows  a  hand  quite  frequently  visible  in  the  histori- 
cal books,  condensing  a  struggle  which  lasted  for  many  years  into  a 
single  event.  As  a  matter  of  fact  Israel  suffered  for  long  afterwards 
at  the  hands  of  the  Philistines.  They  were  the  power  that  harassed 
Saul,  and  yielded  only  to  the  great  powers  and  skill  of  David.  But 
here  the  complete  defeat  of  the  foe  is  credited  to  Samuel. 

14.  From  Ekron  even  unto  Gath.  For  Gath  we  would  better  read 
with  Wellhausen  Gaza,  then  the  meaning  is  that  the  whole  land  of 
Philistia  was  taken  by  Israel,  and  the  assumption  is  that  this  land 
had  once  belonged  to  Israel.  In  late  writings  it  is  assumed  that 
Israel's  borders  extended  to  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  Num.  34  : 6. 
Ekron  and  Gaza  are  both  assigned  to  the  tribe  of  Judah,  Josh.  15  : 
45,  47.  The  Amorites  is  the  general  term  for  the  Canaanites,  and 
so  broader  than  the  Philistines  would  be.  This  writer  holds  that  the 
result  of  Samuel's  great  victory,  was  that  the  whole  land  of  Canaan 

64 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


15.  was  peace  between  Israel  and  the  Amorites.     And 

16.  Samuel  judged  Israel  all  the  days  of  his  life.  And  he 
went  from  year  to  year  in  circuit  to  Beth-el,  and  Gilgal, 
and  Mizpah;  and  he  judged  Israel  in  all  those  places. 

17.  And  his  return  was  to  Ramah,  for  there  was  his  house; 
and  there  he  judged  Israel:  and  he  built  there  an  altar 
unto  the  Lord. 

II.  The  Establishment  of  the  Kingdom,  Chs.  8-12 

I.  The  Later  Story,  Ch.  8;  (see  also  10  :  17-27;  12) 

8.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Samuel  was  old,  that  he 


was  completely  subdued,  as  it  had  formerly  been  treated  as  conquered 
by  Joshua,  This  writer  realizes  that  Israel  had  been  dominated  by 
the  Philistines. 

15-17  describe  the  manner  in  which  Samuel  exercised  his  ruler- 
ship,  going  about  to  different  cities,  and  settling  such  cases  as  were 
brought  to  him.  The  permanent  altar  was  not  at  Mizpah  but  at 
Samuel's  home  in  Ramah,  the  headquarters  of  his  family,  cf.  1:1. 
Shiloh  does  not  appear  in  this  story.  The  idea  that  Samuel  ruled 
all  his  hfe  ignores  the  appointment  of  Saul  as  king. 

In  this  section  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the  compiler  has  combined 
two  independent  and  practically  complete  accounts  of  the  same  event. 
The  earlier  story  (T)  is  found  in  9  :  i-io  :  16,  10  :  27b-ii;  the  later 
(N)  is  in  8,  10  :  i7-27a,  12.  The  two  accounts  differ  in  style  and  in 
their  whole  view  of  the  condition.  In  N  we  find  marked  hostility 
to  the  monarchy,  which  is  grudgingly  given  in  response  to  a  popular 
demand;  in  T  Jahveh  himself  sets  up  the  kingdom  to  save  the  people. 
In  T  the  king  is  selected  by  a  seer  who  inspires  him  to  a  heroic  action 
in  order  thus  to  win  the  throne;  in  N  the  king  is  chosen  from  all 
Israel  by  lot.  In  N  Samuel  is  a  great  national  leader,  without  whom 
the  people  cannot  act;  in  T  he  is  a  little  known  local  seer.  In  T  Saul 
is  the  central  figure,  in  N  Samuel  occupies  first  place. 

It  is  altogether  probable  that  the  earlier  story  gives  the  true  ac- 
count of  the  elevation  of  Saul,  for  the  method  here  described  is  the 
way  kings  were  made  in  ancient  Israel.  The  man  who  would  be 
king  must  first  show  himself  to  be  the  stuff  of  which  kings  are  made. 
Saul's  rescue  of  Jabesh-gilead  makes  the  earlier  anointing  effective. 

65 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


2.  made  his  sons  judges  over  Israel.  Now  the  name  of 
his  firstborn  was  Joel;  and  the  name  of  his  second, 

3.  Abijah:  they  were  judges  in  Beer-sheba.  And  his 
sons  walked  not  in  his  ways,  but  turned  aside  after 
lucre,  and  took  bribes,  and  perverted  judgment. 

4.  Then  all  the  elders  of  Israel  gathered  themselves  to- 

5.  gether,  and  came  to  Samuel  unto  Ramah:  and  they 
said  unto  him,  Behold,  thou  art  old,  and  thy  sons  walk 

(i)  The  people  request  Samuel  to  establish  a  monarchy  in  Israel,  8:1-5 

The  request  is  based  on  three  grounds:  Samuel's  sons  are  not 
just  and  honest  like  their  father;  Israel  wants  a  permanent  govern- 
ment like  other  nations;  and  they  require  a  natural  and  prepared 
leader  in  war,  so  as  not  to  be  dependent  upon  some  one's  rising  to  the 
occasion  as  in  the  time  of  the  judges. 

1.  He  made  his  sons  judges.  It  was  the  general  custom  in  early- 
Israel  for  the  son  to  succeed  to  the  father's  office.  The  sons  of  Gideon 
succeeded  him  on  the  throne,  Judg.  9,  and  the  sons  of  Eli  were  exer- 
cising the  priesthood  in  their  father's  old  age. 

2.  The  names  of  Samuel's  sons  are  given  also  in  i  Chr.  6  :  28.  Each 
contains  a  name  of  the  deity,  Jah  or  El.  Beer-sheba  is  doubtful, 
for  it  was  on  the  very  southern  borders  of  Judah,  a  country  that 
hardly  gets  a  place  in  the  history  until  the  time  of  David.  If  the 
sons  were  so  far  away,  the  whole  people  of  Israel  would  hardly  make 
a  complaint  against  them.  Josephus  says  that  one  son  judged  in 
Bethel  and  the  other  in  Beer-sheba. 

3.  In  his  ways.  The  passage  bears  indirect  testimony  to  the  in- 
tegrity of  Samuel.  Cruninal  charges  were  laid  against  his  sons,  but 
their  course  was  not  their  father's.  The  law  for  the  judge  is  given  in 
Deut.  16  :  19.  Grafting  has  always  been  too  characteristic  of  Oriental 
courts.  The  phrases  are  not  redundant,  for  the  word  translated  lucre 
really  means  unlawful  gain  procured  by  violence,  and  therefore  is  not 
the  same  as  a  bribe. 

4.  The  elders  of  Israel,  c/.  4  : 3,  implies  that  the  clan  leaders,  or  in 
Oriental  terminology  the  sheiks,  acted  on  behalf  of  the  masses  of  the 
people.  The  leaders  would  go  to  Samuel,  as  he  is  regarded  as  possess- 
ing final  authority.  Ramah  is  regarded  as  Samuel's  home  in  agree- 
ment with  7:17. 

5.  Thou  art  old.  The  objection  to  old  men  continuing  too  long  in 
their  office  is  very  ancient.  To  judge  us.  In  the  strict  sense  of  the 
word  judging  is  one  of  the  minor  functions  of  the  king.    But  the  term 

66 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


not  in  thy  ways:  now  make  us  a  king  to  judge  us  like 

6.  all  the  nations.  But  the  thing  displeased  Samuel, 
when  ^  they  said,  Give  us  a  king  to  judge  us.    And 

7.  Samuel  prayed  unto  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  said 
unto  Samuel,  Hearken  unto  the  voice  of  the  people 
in  all  that  they  say  unto  thee:  for  they  have  not  re- 
jected thee,  but  they  have  rejected  me,  that  I  should 

8.  not  be  king  over  them.  According  to  all  the  works  ^ 
which  they  have  done  ^  since  the  day  that  I  brought 


1  Better,  in  that.  2  Better  deeds.  '  Add  with  G.  unto  me. 

is  used  here  as  in  the  book  of  Judges  in  a  broad  sense.  When  we  are 
told  that  Samuel  judged  Israel,  the  meaning  is  that  he  was  the  chief 
ruler,  and  that  was  the  office  to  which  he  had  appointed  his  sons. 
Like  all  the  nations.  Most  of  the  surrounding  peoples  were  ruled  by 
their  kings.  There  seems  to  have  been  a  sort  of  oligarchy  in  Philistia, 
although  later  we  shall  find  a  king  of  Gath  who  seems  to  exercise  a 
supremacy  over  the  whole  land.  The  people  felt  that  they  were  at  a 
disadvantage  because  they  had  no  fixed  and  responsible  head,  whose 
business  it  would  be  to  see  that  the  people  were  not  oppressed  by 
their  neighbors. 

(2)  JaJiveh  directs  Samuel  to  comply  with  the  elders^  request,  8  : 6-9 

6.  Displeased  Samuel.  A  more  literal  rendering  softens  the  expres- 
sion a  bit:  the  proposal  was  evil  in  the  eyes  of  Samuel,  that  is,  he  dis- 
approved of  the  setting  up  of  a  king.  The  reason  of  his  displeasure 
appears  in  Jahveh's  address  in  v.  7.  The  anointing  of  a  king  would 
displace  Samuel  and  his  sons  from  their  position  of  authority.  It 
was  in  effect  a  revolt  against  theocratic  government.  Samuel  prayed 
to  find  a  way  out  of  the  difficulty.  The  will  of  God  is  revealed  now, 
not  by  the  ephod,  but  by  what  was  called  the  word  of  the  Lord,  cf. 
3  :  21  in  answer  to  prayer.    The  answer  is  in  vs.  7-9. 

7.  They  have  rejected  me.  In  rejecting  Samuel  the  people  were 
rejecting  God,  for  the  prophet  was  God's  mouthpiece.  The  author 
of  this  section  was  hostile  to  the  monarchy,  and  regarded  the  simple 
theocratic  government  as  the  divine  plan.  The  people  on  the  other 
hand  felt  that  this  system  had  broken  down,  and,  on  account  of  the 
character  of  the  successors  of  Samuel,  liable  to  bring  still  further 
trouble.  In  spite  of  the  divine  displeasure  Samuel  is  directed  to 
comply  fully  with  the  demand  of  Israel.    The  writer  knew  that  the 

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THE   FIRST  BOOK   OF   SAMUEL 


them  up  out  of  Egypt  even  unto  this  day,  in  that  they 
have  forsaken  me,  and  served  other  gods,  so  do  they 
9.  also  unto  thee.  Now  therefore  hearken  unto  their 
voice:  howbeit  thou  shalt  protest  solemnly  unto  them, 
and  shalt  shew  them  the  manner  of  the  king  that  shall 
reign  over  them. 

10.  And  Samuel  told  all  the  words  of  the  Lord  unto  the 

11.  people  that  asked  of  him  a  king.    And  he  said,  This 

monarchy  had  been  established,  and  he  represents  God  as  allowing  it, 
though  he  disapproved  it. 

8.  So  do  they  also  unto  thee.  The  people  have  treated  God's 
representative  as  they  have  treated  him,  by  rejecting  him  as  their 
leader.  In  characteristic  Deuteronomic  phrases  we  have  a  summary 
of  Israel's  history  alleging  that  the  people  had  been  rebellious  against 
God's  rule  from  the  first.  The  words  hardly  do  the  people's  case 
justice.  There  is  no  sign  of  any  objection  to  Samuel's  rule,  but  only 
to  that  of  his  corrupt  sons. 

9.  Protest  solemnly  does  not  quite  convey  the  idea.  The  time  for 
objection  is  past.  The  will  of  the  people  is  to  prevail,  but  Samuel  is 
directed  to  bear  witness  in  advance  as  to  the  character  of  the  kingly 
rule;  manner  of  the  king  refers  therefore  to  the  character  of  his  ad- 
ministration.   This  is  outlined  in  vs.  10-18. 

(3)  A  forecast  of  the  king's  government,  8  :  10-18 

From  the  circumstances  we  should  expect  a  description  of  the  rule 
of  Saul,  as  he  was  the  king  immediately  in  question.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  the  passage  constitutes  an  excellent  description  of  the  adminis- 
tration of  Solomon.  There  is  no  evidence  that  the  government  of 
either  Saul  or  David  was  oppressive  to  the  people,  but  rather  the  con- 
trary. The  passage  is  related  to  the  law  of  the  king,  Dt.  17  :  14  ff., 
note  especially  the  phrase  in  v.  14, 1  will  set  a  king  over  me  like  all 
the  nations  round  about  me,  cf.  vs.  5,  20.  The  chief  points  are  that 
the  king  will  impose  forced  service  upon  the  people,  for  personal  as 
well  as  for  military  services,  and  that  he  will  impose  taxes  upon  them. 
These  conditions  are  essential  to  the  existence  of  a  monarchy,  but  the 
point  is  that  the  impositions  will  be  excessive. 

10.  All  the  words.  What  follows  is  only  a  part  of  the  message 
which  came  to  Samuel.  The  implication  is  that  he  told  the  people  also 
that  their  demand  was  a  rebellion  against  their  God,  but  that  it  would 
be  granted  only  to  bring  them  distress  in  the  end. 

11.  Appoint  them  imtohim,  that  is,  appropriate  their  services  to 

68 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


will  be  the  manner  of  the  king  that  shall  reign  over 
you;  he  will  take  your  sons,  and  appoint  them  unto 
him,  for  his  chariots,  and  to  be  his  horsemen;  and 

12.  they  shall  run  before  his  chariots:  and  he  will  ap- 
point them  unto  him  for  captains  of  thousands, 
and  captains  of  fifties;  ^  and  he  will  set  some  to 
plow  his  ground,  and  to  reap  his  harvest,  and 
to   make  his   instruments  of  war,   and  the    instru- 

13.  ments  of  his  chariots.  And  he  will  take  your 
daughters  to  be  confectionaries,  and  to  be  cooks,  and 

14.  to  be  bakers.    And  he  will  take  your  fields,  and  your 

1  G.  reads  hintdreds. 


his  own  use  in  the  various  ways  defined.  For  his  chariots,  literally 
in  his  chariots.  A  text  of  G.  reads  appoint  them  his  charioteers. 
These  men  were  to  drive  the  king's  chariots  and  fight  in  them,  though 
personal  rather  than  military  uses  are  meant  here.  There  were  prob- 
ably no  royal  chariots  in  Saul's  time.  Horsemen  is  a  military  term, 
though  it  may  refer  here  to  a  mounted  bodyguard  in  attendance 
upon  the  king.  Run  before  his  chariots,  a  body  of  runners  preced- 
ing his  chariot  marked  the  dignity  of  the  royal  state,  2  Sam.  15:1, 
I  Kings,  1:5. 

12.  Thousands  is  roughly  equivalent  to  our  term  regiments  and 
fifties,  which  should  probably  be  hundreds,  corresponds  to  our  com- 
panies, although  military  organization  has  recently  been  radically 
changed.  The  passage  refers  only  to  the  appointment  of  ofl&cers, 
and  military  office  is  always  deemed  a  high  honor.  Menial  service 
is  described  in  what  follows,  though  a  part  of  it  is  for  military  pur- 
poses. In  the  indictment  of  the  monarchy  much  stress  is  laid  upon 
the  burden  of  the  warlike  institutions,  and  thus  the  cry  against  ex- 
cessive armament  is  by  no  means  modern. 

13.  Women  are  to  be  used  only  for  domestic  offices.  Confection 
conveys  a  wrong  idea.  The  Hebrew  word  has  to  do  with  oil  used 
in  the  manufacture  of  ointments  which  are  used  so  largely  by  the 
Orientals.  The  rendering  therefore  should  be  perfumers  or  ointment 
makers. 

14.  The  confiscation  of  private  property  would  mark  the  king's 
rule,  and  here  we  come  to  a  real  oppression  which  is  unfortunately  too 
characteristic  of  absolute  monarchs.  Ezekiel  refers  to  this  wrong, 
Ez.  46  :  18.    His  servants  are  the  court  officials  upon  whom  the  king 

69 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


vineyards,  and  your  oliveyards,  even  the  best  of  them, 

15.  and  give  them  to  his  servants.  And  he  will  take  the 
tenth  of  your  seed,  and  of  your  vineyards,  and  give 

16.  to  his  officers,^  and  to  his  servants.  And  he  will  take 
your  menservants,  and  your  maidservants,  and  your 
goodhest  young  men,  and  your  asses,  and  put  them  to 

17.  his  work.    He  will  take  the  tenth  of  your  flocks:  and 

18.  ye  shall  be  his  servants.  And  ye  shall  cry  out  in  that 
day  because  of  your  king  which  ye  shall  have  chosen 
you;  and  the  Lord  will  not  answer  you  in  that  da}^. 

1  Or,  eunuchs. 


would  bestow  property  at  the  expense  of  others.  The  evil  of  this 
was  not  merely  in  the  confiscation,  but  the  violation  of  family  rights: 
cf.  story  of  Naboth's  vineyard,  i  Kings  21. 

15.  Your  seed  is  often  interpreted  as  the  grain  crop;  but  as  the 
king  would  naturally  tax  everything,  we  need  a  term  complementary 
to  vineyards.  The  Hebrew  word  may  mean  arable  land  (B.D.B.  Heb. 
Lex.),  and  that  gives  the  best  sense  here.  The  tithe  was  not  always 
an  exact  tenth,  but  covers  "any  import  paid  in  kind  upon  a  fixed 
scale"  (W.  R.  Smith,  Religion  Semites,  p.  227).  It  was  one  of  the 
common  methods  of  taxing  for  the  support  of  an  Oriental  king. 
Solomon's  method  is  described  in  i  Ki.  4. 

16.  Your  goodliest  young  men  does  not  fit  well  between  slaves 
and  asses,  and  the  conscription  of  young  men  has  already  been 
described.  The  G.  has  read  a  similar  Hebrew  word  oxen  or  cattle, 
which  suits  the  text  much  better. 

17.  Your  flocks  refers  to  the  sheep,  which  would  be  taken  for  food 
and  clothing  as  the  oxen  and  asses  had  been  taken  for  work.  Whereas 
there  was  no  limit  to  the  confiscation  of  the  oxen  and  asses,  the  tax- 
ing of  the  sheep  was  on  some  fixed  scale.  Ye  shall  be  his  servants. 
We  should  expect  and  give  them  to  his  servants  as  in  v.  14  f.  The  mean- 
ing of  the  text  is  that  as  the  result  of  the  whole  system  of  oppression, 
Israel  will  lose  their  freedom  and  be  reduced  to  bondage.  By  their 
own  act  they  will  return  to  the  condition  of  slavery  from  which  their 
God  had  redeemed  them  when  he  brought  them  out  of  Egypt. 

18.  Will  not  answer  because  their  suffering  was  brought  upon 
themselves  advisedly,  they  not  heeding  the  abundant  warning  of 
God  through  his  prophet.     The  G.  adds  because  you  demanded  a 

70 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


19.  But  the  people  refused  to  hearken  unto  the  voice  of 
Samuel;  and  they  said,  Nay;  but  we  will  have  a  king 

20.  over  us;  that  we  also  may  be  like  all  the  nations; 
and  that  our  king  may  judge  us,  and  go  before  out 

21.  us,  and  fight  our  battles.  And  Samuel  heard  all  the 
words  of  the  people,  and  he  rehearsed  them  in  the  ears 

22.  of  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  said  to  Samuel,  Hearken 
unto  their  voice,  and  make  them  a  king.  And  Samuel 
said  unto  the  men  of  Israel,  Go  ye  every  man  unto  his 
city. 

2.  The  Earlier  Story,  9  :  i-io:  16 
9.  Now  there  was  a  man  of  Benjamin,  whose  name  was 

king  for  yourselves,  which,  as  H.  P.  Smith  says,  is  a  correct  inter- 
pretation. 

(4)  The  people  persist  in  their  demand,  8:  19-22 

19.  Refused.  It  is  evident  that  though  Samuel  had  been  directed 
to  set  up  the  kingdom  as  asked,  his  effort  up  to  this  point  had  been 
to  dissuade  the  people  from  what  he  deemed  an  inexpedient  and 
wicked  request.    They  refused  to  be  deterred  by  his  dark  picture. 

20.  Like  all  the  nations.  The  people  evidently  felt  that  their 
military  inferiority  was  largely  due  to  their  very  inadequate  organiza- 
tion, both  civil  and  military;  and  they  were  undoubtedly  right.  No 
small  part  of  David's  success  later  was  due  to  his  small  body  of  trained 
veterans,  who  were  always  ready  for  war.  At  this  point  the  people 
enlarge  somewhat  the  reasons  which  had  originally  prompted  the 
desire  for  a  king.  There  is  no  longer  any  reference  to  Samuel's  age 
or  to  the  character  of  his  sons. 

22.  The  prophet  was  not  satisfied  until  he  had  carried  the  case 
once  more  to  the  Lord.  This  time  heaven  urges  no  further  reproofs, 
but  only  orders  the  compliance  with  the  popular  request.  The  last 
half  of  the  verse  is  generally  explained  as  an  insertion  by  the  compiler 
to  make  a  suitable  background  for  ch.  9.  The  dispersion  of  the  people 
hardly  serves  as  a  step  towards  the  selection  of  a  king.  This  story  is 
resumed  in  10  :  17. 

9:  1-5.    Saul's  vain  search  for  the  last  asses. 

I.  The  son  of  a  Benjamite.     Undoubtedly  we  should  have  here 

71 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Kish,  the  son  of  Abiel,  the  son  of  Zeror,  the  son  of 
Becorath,  the  son  of  Aphiah,  the  son  of  a  Benjamite,  a 

2.  mighty  man  of  valour.  And  he  had  a  son,  whose  name 
was  Saul,  a  young  man  and  a  goodly:  and  there  was 
not  among  the  children  of  Israel  a  goodUer  person 
than  he:  from  his  shoulders  and  upward  he  was  higher 

3.  than  any  of  the  people.  And  the  asses  of  Kish  Saul's 
father  were  lost.  And  Kish  said  to  Saul  his  son,  Take 
now  one  of  the  servants  with  thee,  and  arise,  go  seek 

4.  the  asses.    And  he  ^  passed  through  the  hill  country  of 

1  Read  with  G.  they. 

either  a  son  of  Benjamin,  Saul  then  being  traced  back  to  the  son  of 
Rachel,  or  less  probably,  another  proper  name.  It  was  quite  com- 
mon thus  to  record  the  lineage  of  celebrated  persons,  cf.  e.  g., 
Ruth  4  :  18  ff.  Ezra  7  :  1-5.  According  to  i  Chron.  8  :  33,  9  : 
39  Saul's  father  was  Ner.  Mighty  man  of  valour,  or  more  probably 
of  wealth.  There  is  no  evidence  of  heroism  on  the  part  of  Kish,  but 
there  is  of  property,  and  the  word  bears  both  senses. 

2.  Young  man.  As  Saul  already  had  an  adult  son,  we  need  to 
bear  in  mind  the  comprehensiveness  of  the  term  young.  The  one 
definite  characteristic  of  Saul  is  his  great  stature.  The  description 
occurs  in  10  :  23,  from  which,  as  H.  P.  Smith  suggests  our  passage 
may  be  borrowed. 

3.  The  asses  implies  that  the  whole  herd  had  strayed. 

4.  With  this  verse  we  find  a  very  abrupt  transition  from  the  com- 
mand of  Kish  to  a  description  of  Saul's  journey.  The  gap  is  well 
filled  by  an  often  overlooked  text  of  G.,  which  adds  to  v.  3:  and 
Saul  arose  and  took  one  of  his  father's  servants  with  him,  atid  he  set 
forth  to  look  for  the  asses  of  Kish  his  father.  In  this  account  of  Saul's 
itinerary  four  places  are  named,  of  which  two,  Shalishah  and  Shaalim 
are  quite  unknown.  The  implication  is  that  Saul  and  his  servant 
searched  first  the  mountains  of  Ephraim,  then  through  these  un- 
known places  and  thence  to  the  land  of  Benjamin,  and  were  now 
back  near  home.  Gibeah,  Kish's  home  town,  was  close  to  the  border 
of  Ephraim,  and  so  Saul  apparently  went  north  at  the  start.  He 
must  have  circled  either  to  the  east  or  west,  and  on  this  circuit 
passed  the  unknown  lands.  As  the  whole  journey  lasted  but  three 
days,  the  distance  travelled  was  not  very  great. 

72 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  9:6 


Ephraim,  and  passed  through  the  land  of  Shalishah, 
but  they  found  them  not:  then  they  passed  through  the 
land  of  Shaalim,  and  there  they  were  not:  and  he  passed 
through  the  land  of  the  Benjamites,  but  they  found 

5.  them  not.  When  they  were  come  to  the  land  of  Zuph, 
Saul  said  to  his  servant  that  was  with  him,  Come  and 
let  us  return;  lest  my  father  leave  caring  for  the  asses, 

6.  and  take  thought  for  us.  And  he  said  unto  him, 
Behold  now,  there  is  in  this  city  a  man  of  God,  and 
he  is  a  man  that  is  held  in  honour;  all  that  he  saith 
Cometh  surely  to  pass:  now  let  us  go  ^  thither;  per- 
adventure   he   can   tell   us   concerning   our   journey 


G.  to  him. 


5.  Zuph  was  the  home  of  Samuel's  family  {cf.  note  on  i  :  i)  and  was 
in  the  mountains  of  Ephriam.  It  appears  that  they  had  started  on 
a  second  journey,  an  impression  dear  from  the  Latin  text,  which 
adds  a;wf  they  did  not  find  them.  They  may,  however,  have  been 
comparatively  near  home  when  Saul  reaHzed  that  his  father  might 
now  be  more  anxious  about  his  son  than  about  the  asses.  Leave 
caring.  The  greater  sohcitude  would  destroy  the  lesser.  Take 
thought  is  too  mild.  The  word  carries  the  sense  of  anxiety  or  worry; 
and  that  is  not  too  strong  to  predicate  of  a  father  who  feared  that 
his  son  might  be  lost. 

Saul  goes  to  consult  a  seer,  9:  6-10, 

6.  In  this  city.  The  servant's  remark  implies  that  Samuel's  abode 
was  Zuph,  the  seat  of  his  family,  1:1,  and  not  Ramah  as  held  in 
the  later  tradition,  7:17.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  it  was  the 
servant  rather  than  Saul  who  knew  about  the  seer,  and  who  proposed 
a  method  which  more  cultivated  people  might  deem  superstitious. 
The  servant  urges  as  a  reason  for  consulting  the  seer  the  latter's 
past  successes,  of  which  Saul  is  quite  ignorant.  The  meaning  is 
obviously  not  limited  to  accuracy  of  prediction,  but  covers  a  broad 
knowledge  of  the  occult,  such  as  would  meet  Saul's  difficulty.  Per- 
adventure  indicates  less  confidence  that  we  should  expect  of  the 
servant.  The  same  phrase  was  used  by  the  Philistine  seers,  6:5. 
It  is  to  be  regarded  as  our  D.  V.  The  servant  is  sure  that  the  seer 
can  tell  them  where  the  lost  asses  are,  and  so  indicate  the  course  on 
which  they  should  travel. 

73 


9:7  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


7.  whereon  we  go.  Then  said  Saul  to  his  servant,  But, 
behold,  if  we  go,  what  shall  we  bring  the  man?  for  the 
bread  is  spent  in  our  vessels,  and  there  is  not  a  present 
to  bring  to  the  man  of  God:  what  have  we?    And  the 

8.  servant  answered  Saul  again,  and  said,  Behold,  I  have 
in  my  hand  the  fourth  part  of  a  shekel  of  silver:  that 
will  I  ^  give  to  the  man  of  God,  to  tell  us  our  way. 

9.  (Beforetime  in  Israel,  when  a  man  went  to  inquire  of 
God,  thus  he  said,  Come  and  let  us  go  to  the  seer:  for 
he  that  is  now  called  a  Prophet  was  beforetime  called 

1  G.  thou  shall  give. 

7.  The  text  of  this  verse  makes  poor  sense,  as  Saul  first  declares 
that  there  is  nothing  to  serve  as  a  fee  for  the  seer,  and  then  contra- 
dicts himself  by  asking  the  servant  what  they  have.  By  the  aid  of 
Gr.  it  is  possible  to  render  the  crucial  part  of  the  verse  so  as  to  make 
sense:  the  bread  is  exhausted  from  our  sacks,  and  what  (else)  we  have 
will  not  serve  as  a  fee  for  the  man  of  God.  The  word  rendered  present 
in  the  text  is  of  unknown  meaning,  but  the  context  suggests  what 
is  meant.  Saul  knows  that  a  fee  is  expected  for  consultation  with  a 
seer,  and  in  the  low  state  of  their  resources  cannot  see  whence  a  fee 
is  to  come. 

8.  I  have  in  my  hand  is  too  exact.  The  Heb.  may  be  better  ren- 
dered there  is  found  in  my  possession,  or  freely  as  in  B.  D.  B.,  /  happen 
to  have  by  me.  Shekel  was  a  silver  coin  worth  about  67  cents.  This 
is  one  of  the  few  Hebrew  words  quite  adopted  into  English.  The 
existence  of  the  money  was  apparently  unknown  to  Saul,  and  was 
the  property  of  the  servant,  so  that  a  slave  might  have  possessions 
of  his  own.  Will  I  give.  By  a  change  chiefly  of  pointing  the  Greek 
makes  the  servant  offer  the  money  to  Saul  that  he  may  make  the 
required  payment. 

9.  Inquire  of  God  and  go  to  the  seer  are  used  here  as  s5nion)anous 
terms,  showing  the  popular  esteem  in  which  the  seer  was  held.  This 
verse  was  evidently  written  long  after  the  event,  for  the  change  of 
name  had  already  taken  place.  The  seer  of  Samuel's  day  had  be- 
come the  prophet  in  the  author's  time.  The  verse  is  an  annotation 
probably  from  a  later  hand.  It  is  out  of  place  here  as  neither  seer 
nor  prophet  has  yet  been  applied  to  the  man  of  God.  The  explana- 
tion would  be  more  suitable  after  v.  11. 

74 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  9:13 


10.  a  Seer.)  Then  said  Saul  to  his  servant,  Well  said; 
come,  let  us  go.    So  they  went  unto  the  city  where  the 

11.  man  of  God  was.  As  they  went  up  the  ascent  to  the 
city,  they  found  young  maidens  going  out  to  draw 

12.  water,  and  said  unto  them.  Is  the  seer  here?  And 
they  answered  them,  and  said.  He  is;  behold,  he  is  be- 
fore thee:  ^  make  haste  ^  now,  for  he  is  come  to-day 
into  the  city;  for  the  people  have  a  sacrifice  to-day 

13.  in  the  high  place:  as  soon  as  ye  come  into  the  city, 

1  G.  correctly  you.  2  Omitted  in  G. 

10.  Well  said.  Better,  good  is  thy  plan,  as  it  covers  approval  of 
the  suggestion  to  consult  the  seer  and  the  ofifer  of  money  to  pay  him. 
The  city  would  be  Ramah,  according  to  7  :  17;  at  all  events  it  was  in 
the  land  of  Zulph  and  the  home  of  Samuel's  ancestors. 

Saul  meets  Samuel  at  the  gate  of  the  city,  9  :  11-14. 

11.  Ascent.  For  better  protection  against  enemies  cities  were 
built  on  high  points,  rarely  in  valleys.  To  draw  water.  The  spring 
or  well  of  course  would  be  in  the  lower  valleys,  and  all  the  water 
used  had  to  be  carried  some  distance  up  the  hill.  The  drawing  of 
the  water  was  a  part  of  the  household  work  of  women.  The  term 
suggests  that  they  may  have  been  slaves.  Here  or  as  we  would 
say,  at  home. 

1 2  f .  The  women  answer  the  question  at  great  length,  giving  an 
explanation  of  the  custom  at  the  feast,  and  especially  indicating  the 
prominent  part  assigned  to  the  seer.  Before  thee  suggests  in  thy 
presence,  which  cannot  be  right.  The  idea  is  ahead  of  you  (for  the 
plural  should  occur  throughout).  Samuel  had  gone  into  the  city 
just  ahead  of  Saul  and  his  servant.  Make  haste  has  no  fitness  here, 
but  may  pass  in  view  of  the  statement  in  v.  13  that  the  travellers 
will  barely  catch  Samuel  before  he  goes  to  the  sacrifice.  High  place 
means  a  sanctuary  upon  a  hill,  here  evidently  higher  than  the  city 
itself.  From  v.  22  it  appears  that  there  was  a  building  here,  marking 
the  sanctuary  as  important.  These  high  places  came  into  disrepute 
with  the  later  efforts  to  centralize  the  worship  at  the  Jerusalem 
temple.  He  doth  bless  the  sacrifice  refers  to  a  rite  of  which  we  have 
no  other  information.  It  was  evidently  deemed  important,  and  to 
be  most  fitly  performed  only  by  the  man  of  God.  They  that  be 
bidden,  or  guests,  often  found  at  sacrificial  meals,  i  Kings  i  :4i. 
Presumably  the  animals  were  furnished  by  one  rich  man,  and  the 
thirty  partakers  were  his  guests. 

75 


9:14  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


ye  shall  straightway  find  him,  before  he  go  up  to  the 
high  place  to  eat:  for  the  people  will  not  eat  until  he 
come,  because  he  doth  bless  the  sacrifice;  and  after- 
wards they  eat  that  be  bidden.     Now  therefore  get 

14.  you  up;  for  at  this  time  ye  shall  find  him.  And  they 
went  up  to  the  city;  and  as  they  came  within  the  city, 
behold,  Samuel  came  out  against  them,  for  to  go  up 
to  the  high  place. 

15.  Now  the  Lord  had  revealed  unto  Samuel  a  day  before 

16.  Saul  came,  saying.  To-morrow  about  this  time  I  will 
send  thee  a  man  out  of  the  land  of  Benjamin,  and 
thou  shalt  anoint  him  to  be  prince  over  my  people 

14.  Within  the  city.  The  Hebrew  has  in  the  midst  of  the  city,  in  the 
central  part.  To  agree  with  v.  18,  and  with  the  phrase  came  outy 
we  should  read  as  Driver  suggests  in  the  middle  of  the  gate,  i.  e.,  right 
at  the  gate.  As  the  travellers  enter  the  gate,  Samuel  is  coming  out  on 
his  way  to  the  sacrifice  on  the  high  place. 

Jahveh's  revelation  to  Samuel,  9  :  15-17 

15  f.  Revealed,  lit.  uncovered  the  ear,  so  that  he  could  hear;  probably 
originally  referring  to  some  unwinding  of  the  turban  which  covered  the 
head.  A  day  before  coupled  with  to-morrow  in  v.  16,  shows  that  the 
revelation  to  Samuel  came  just  when  it  was  needed.  I  will  send  thee. 
Though  Saul  came  to  the  city  to  get  information  which  would  lead 
to  the  discovery  of  his  father's  lost  property,  the  writer  conceives 
that  it  was  the  spirit  of  God  that  led  him  to  the  city  of  the  Zuphites, 
and  that  is  characteristic  Hebrew  theology.  Prince.  We  note  a 
different  word  from  king  in  c.  8,  but  there  is  no  difference  indicated 
in  the  office.  ^  Shall  save  my  people.  The  purpose  for  which  the  king 
is  to  be  appointed  agrees  with  one  of  the  objects  sought  by  the  people 
in  their  demand,  8  :  20,  though  in  the  latter  case  it  is  stated  in  more 
general  terms.  But  in  this  section  the  initiative  is  taken  by  Jahveh, 
and  there  is  no  hint  of  a  displacement  of  Samuel,  who  here  enters 
heartily  into  the  task  assigned  him  from  on  high.  Samuel's  office  is 
not  here  conceived  as  political  as  in  cc.  7,  8.  He  is  a  seer  pure  and 
simple,  and  assumes  no  authority  over  the  people.  Looked  upon, 
or  better  with  G.  /  have  beheld  the  affliction  of  my  people,  cf.  Ex.  3:7. 
The  distress  was  caused  by  the  grinding  oppression  of  the  Philistines, 
because  of  which  the  people  cried  out  to  heaven,  and  their  cry  was 
heard. 

76 


THE   FIRST    BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  9:19 


Israel,  and  he  shall  save  my  people  out  of  the  hand  of 
the  Philistines:  for  I  have  looked  upon  my  people, 

17.  because  their  cry  is  come  unto  me.  And  when  Samuel 
saw  Saul,  the  Lord  said  unto  him.  Behold  the  man 
of  whom  I  spake  to  thee!  this  same  shall  have  author- 

18.  ity  over  my  people.  Then  Saul  drew  near  to  Samuel 
in  the  gate,  and  said,  Tell  me,  I  pray  thee,  where  the 

19.  seer's  house  is.    And  Samuel  answered  Saul,  and  said, 

17.  The  Lord  said,  literally  answered,  a  word  loosely  used  in 
Hebrew,  but  appropriate  here,  since  Jahveh  replies  to  the  question 
in  Samuel's  mind,  whether  the  stranger  who  comes  in  the  gate  was 
the  one  to  whom  the  high  office  was  to  be  committed.  God  leaves 
nothing  to  chance,  bat  designates  unmistakably  the  chosen  man. 
Have  authority.  The  Hebrew  word  means  restrain,  shut  up,  the  very 
opposite  of  what  the  context  demands.  By  a  slight  change  we  could 
get  save,  deliver,  and  that  suits  the  passage  better. 

Saul  is  made  chief  gaest  at  the  sacred  feast,  9  :  18-25. 

18.  Where  the  seer's  house  is.  In  spite  of  the  almost  suspiciously 
elaborate  assurance  of  the  women,  evidently  Saul  expected  to  find 
Samuel  at  his  home.  Neither  Saul  nor  the  servant  knew  Samuel 
by  sight,  though  the  latter  knew  his  reputation. 

19  f .  I  am  the  seer,  more  than  answers  Saul's  question,  for  meeting 
the  seer,  there  is  no  need  to  find  his  house.  Go  up  before  me.  The 
precedence  accorded  Saul  suggests  the  high  honor  awaiting  him. 
Saul  had  as  yet  no  suspicion  of  anything  other  than  the  usual  hos- 
pitality accorded  to  strangers.  In  thine  heart  =  upon  thy  mind. 
Samuel  does  not  wait  for  Saul  to  state  the  reason  for  his  inquiry  as 
to  the  location  of  the  seer's  house,  but  proceeds  to  take  necessary 
steps  to  execute  the  mission  which  the  Lord  put  into  his  hands. 
This  task  was  one  of  great  delicacy,  as  we  shall  see,  and  must  be 
approached  shrewdly.  The  first  step  is  to  get  a  personal  hold  on 
Saul.  To  accomplish  this  he  pursues  two  lines:  he  detains  him  a  day 
to  insure  a  more  intimate  mutual  accquaintance;  and  he  impresses 
him  with  his  power  as  a  man  of  God,  by  disclosing  the  fact  that  he 
knows  Saul's  business  without  being  told,  v.  20,  and  by  giving  the 
information  for  which  Saul  had  come,  that  the  asses  were  found. 
This  fact  would  relieve  Saul's  mind  to  a  degree  so  that  he  was  per- 
suaded to  delay  even  though  there  was  no  assurance  of  any  relief 
to  his  father's  anxiety.  Such  occult  knowledge  was  considered  proof 
of  being  a  prophet,  Lk.  7  :  39.  The  latter  part  of  v.  20  is  obscure, 
but  it  certainly  forecasts  somewhat  vaguely  the  future  honor  of 

77 


9:22  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


I  am  the  seer;  go  up  before  me  unto  the  high  place, 
for  ye  shall  ^  eat  with  me  to-day:  and  in  the  morning 
I  will  let  thee  go,  and  will  tell  thee  all  that  is  in  thine 

20.  heart.  And  as  for  thine  asses  that  were  lost  three 
days  ago,  set  not  thy  mind  on  them;  for  they  are 
found.    And  for  whom  is  all  that  is  desirable  in  Israel? 

21.  Is  it  not  for  thee,  and  for  all  thy  father's  house?  And 
Saul  answered  and  said,  Am  not  I  a  Benjamite,  of 
the  smallest  of  the  tribes  of  Israel?  and  my  family 
the  least  of  all  the  families  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin? 
wherefore  then  speakest  thou  to  me  after  this  manner? 

22.  And  Samuel  took  Saul  and  his  servant,  and  brought 

1  Better  thou  shall. 

Saul's  house,  and  may  be  intended,  as  H.  P.  Smith  suggests,  to 
awaken  his  ambition.  Budde  ingeniously  combines  with  preceding: 
"  you  do  not  need  be  troubled  about  the  asses,  since  to  you  and  your 
house  shall  belong  all  that  is  prized  in  Israel." 

21.  It  is  not  necessary  to  suppose  that  Saul  grasped  the  full  im- 
port of  the  seer's  words,  but  he  must  have  perceived  some  mark  of 
distinction.  Saul's  disclaimer  of  fitness  cannot  be  taken  too  seriously: 
small  tribes  are  not  always  the  most  modest,  and  Saul's  father  was 
a  man  of  property,  and  appears  to  have  been  well  known  cf.  Gideon's 
similar  words,  Judg.  6  :  15. 

22.  Guest-chamber  to  modern  ears  is  suggestive  of  a  sleeping 
room.  The  room  here  meant  is  one  annexed  to  a  temple  in  which 
the  sacrificial  meals  were  eaten.  In  the  chief  est  place,  lit.  at  the  head 
of  the  guests.  The  servant  occupied  a  high  place  with  his  master,  for 
social  distinctions  were  not  sharply  drawn  in  old  Israel.  The  place 
of  honor  was  due  to  Saul's  destined  kingship. 

23  f .  The  cook,  but  the  term  applies  rather  to  the  one  who  slays 
the  animal  then  to  the  one  who  cooks  it.  Samuel  had  been  advised 
of  the  coming  of  a  Benjamite,  and  had  directed  that  a  specially  choice 
or  large  portion  of  the  sacrifice  be  reserved.  If  the  women's  saying 
was  right  that  the  meal  would  await  Samuel's  coming,  such  previous 
direction  would  only  be  explained  as  due  to  the  tendency  of  the 
feasters  to  seek  quickly  for  the  best  parts  of  the  animal.  The  thigh 
was  a  choice  and  large  portion.  These  men  ate  meat  rarely,  but  on 
festive  occasions  devoured  large  portions.     That  which  was  upon  it 

78 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


them  into  the  guest-chamber,  and  made  them  sit  in 
the  chiefest  place  among   them   that  were  bidden, 

23.  which  were  about  thirty  persons.  And  Samuel  said 
unto  the  cook,  Bring  the  portion  which  I  gave  thee, 

24.  of  which  I  said  unto  thee,  Set  it  by  thee.  And  the 
cook  took  up  the  thigh,  and  that  which  was  upon  it, 
and  set  it  before  Saul.  And  Samuel  said.  Behold  that 
which  hath  been  reserved!  set  it  before  thee  and  eat; 
because  unto  the  appointed  time  hath  it  been  kept 
for  thee,  for  I  said,  I  have  invited  the  people.    So  Saul 

25.  did  eat  with  Samuel  that  day.  And  when  they  were 
come  down  from  the  high  place  into  the  city,  he 

26.  communed  with  Saul  ^  upon  the  housetop.    And  they 

1  G.  made  a  couch  for  Saul. 

is  devoid  of  sense,  and  the  Hebrew  word  quite  impossible.  A  com- 
mon emendation  makes  it  the  fat  tail,  a  part  of  a  sheep  much  prized 
as  food.  That  which  hath  been  reserved  is  a  mistranslation.  The 
word  means  that  which  is  left,  and  would  imply  that  the  feast  was 
over  and  Saul  was  given  what  the  other  guests  had  left  over.  H.  P. 
Smith  reads  flesh,  so  we  have  behold  the  meat,  set  it  before  thee  and 
eat.  But  the  cook  had  already  set  the  portion  before  Saul.  I  have 
invited  the  people  makes  no  sense  in  this  connection.  The  G.  shows 
that  the  text  has  been  badly  corrupted.  Smith,  following  Budde, 
emends  to  get:  "  for  to  the  appointed  time  we  have  waited  for  thee  to 
eat  with  the  guests."  It  seems  probable  that  Samuel  means  that 
being  forewarned  of  the  coming  of  a  distinguished  Benjamite  on 
this  day,  he  had  prepared  the  feast  and  invited  the  guests  in  order 
to  show  honor  to  Saul.  But  the  text  is  so  bad  it  is  impossible  to 
clear  up  the  details  satisfactorily. 

25.  He  communed  with  Saul  is  clear  enough  in  itself,  but  it 
prepares  the  way  badly  for  v.  26.  With  the  G.  we  should  read:  and 
they  made  a  couch  for  Saul  upon  the  roof,  and  he  went  to  bed.  The  com- 
muning came  the  next  day. 

Samuel  secretly  anoints  Saul,  9  :  26-10  :  i 

26.  They  arose  early  is  quite  impossible,  standing  before  the 
statement  that  Samuel  called  Saul  at  dawn.  The  Gr.  makes  the 
matter  clear;  the  Hebrew  word  by  a  slight  change  gets  an  opposite 
sense  he  went  to  bed  and  that  belongs  to  v.  25.    The  spring  of  the  day 

79 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


arose  early:  and  it  came  to  pass  about  the  spring  of 
the  day,  that  Samuel  called  to  Saul  on  the  housetop, 
saying,  Up,  that  I  may  send  thee  away.  And  Saul 
arose,  and  they  went  out  both  of  them,  he  and  Samuel, 

27.  abroad.  As  they  were  going  down  at  the  end  of  the 
city,  Samuel  said  to  Saul,  Bid  the  servant  pass  on 
before  us,  (and  he  passed  on,^)  but  stand  thou  still 
at  this  time,  that  I  may  cause  thee  to  hear  the  word 
of  God. 

10.  Then  Samuel  took  the  vial  of  oil,  and  poured  it  upon 

his  head,  and  kissed  him,  and  said.  Is  it  not  that  the 

Lord  hath  anointed  thee  to  be  prince  over  his  in- 

2.  heritance?    When  thou  art  departed  from  me  to-day, 

1  Omit  G. 

refers  to  an  early  hour,  the  beginning  of  daylight.  The  significant 
interview  with  Saul  was  arranged  for  an  hour  when  secrecy  would  be 
assured.  Abroad  conveys  rather  too  wide  a  sense.  The  idea  is  that 
they  went  outside,  i.  e.,  of  the  house. 

27,  The  end  of  the  city.  When  the  outskirts  were  reached  there 
would  be  the  assurance  of  that  privacy  which  Samuel  required. 
Even  the  servant  was  not  to  be  admitted  to  the  secret,  and  so  he 
was  directed  to  go  on  ahead  so  as  to  be  out  of  hearing.  Most  Greek 
texts  omit  and  he  passed  on,  but  one  transposes  it  and  contains  an 
additional  clause  which  appears  to  be  authentic:  and  Saul  spoke  to 
his  servant,  and  he  went  on  ahead  of  them.  The  word  of  God  is  the 
revelation  which  had  come  to  the  seer  two  days  before,  v.  15  f. 

10  :  I.  Anointing  with  oil  accompanied  the  induction  to  important 
oj0&ces.  The  kissing  is  apparently  a  mere  act  of  greeting,  and  is  not 
an  act  of  homage.  The  fuller  address  to  Saul  preserved  in  G.  is 
accepted  by  most  scholars:  has  not  Jahvch  anointed  thee  prince  over 
his  people  Israel?  and  thou  shall  rule  over  the  people  of  the  Lord  and 
shall  save  them  from  the  hand  of  their  enemies  round  about. 

The  signs  which  confirm  Samuel's  act,  10  :  2-7. 

2.  The  text  has  an  abrupt  beginning  and  leaves  us  to  inference. 
Here  again  G.  has  preserved  the  true  text,  beginning:  And  this  shall 
be  a  sign  unto  thee  that  the  Lord  hath  anointed  thee  as  prince  over  his 
inheritance.  There  were  really  three  separate  signs  given,  but  all 
consist  of  the  seer's  foretelling  the  different  bodies  Saul  would  meet 

80 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


then  thou  shalt  find  two  men  by  Rachel's  sepulchre, 
in  the  border  of  Benjamin  at  Zelzah;  and  they  will 
say  unto  thee,  The  asses  which  thou  wentest  to  seek 
are  found:  and,  lo,  thy  father  hath  left  the  care  of  the 
asses,  and  taketh  thought  for  you,  saying,  What  shall 
3.  I  do  for  my  son?  Then  shalt  thou  go  on  forward  from 
thence,  and  thou  shalt  come  to  the  oak  of  Tabor, 
and  there  shall  meet  thee  ^  there  three  men  going  up 
to  God  to  Beth-el,  one  carrying  three  kids,  and  another 
carrying  three  loaves  ^  of  bread,  and  another  carrying  a 

1  G.  thou  shalt  meet.  2  q_  baskets. 

on  his  journey  home.  Saul  must  be  convinced  that  he  is  not  impelled 
to  usurp  authority  by  the  advice  of  a  man,  but  that  Samuel  is  clothed 
with  divine  authority  to  direct  him  to  undertake  the  hard  task  of 
delivering  Israel  from  its  foes.  The  prophet  must  support  his  word 
with  a  sign  as  evidence  that  he  speaks  with  authority.  Rachel's 
sepulchre  is  here  plainly  located  in  the  land  of  Benjamin,  From 
Gen.  35  :  19  f.  this  grave  has  been  located  at  Bethlehem  in  Judah. 
As  Rachel  was  the  mother  of  Benjamin  and  Joseph  (Ephraim),  the 
natural  place  for  her  tomb  would  be  on  the  border  of  these  tribes. 
Zelzah  has  baffled  all  students  from  the  Greek  translators  down. 
A  closer  definition  of  place  seems  hardly  necessary  here.  From  the 
fact  that  in  the  other  signs  there  is  specified  something  the  men 
carry,  it  might  be  guessed  that  the  original  text  had  with  .  .  .  ,  the 
blank  standing  for  some  mark  by  which  the  two  men  might  be  identi- 
fied. The  men  first  declare  what  the  seer  had  already  told  Saul,  that 
the  asses  were  found,  and  then  what  he  had  apprehended,  9  :  5  that 
his  father's  anxiety  for  him  had  become  acute.  It  is  assumed  that 
these  men  will  know  Saul  and  the  occasion  of  his  journey,  and  they 
may  have  been  sent  out  to  search  for  him. 

3  f .  Go  on.  The  word  is  otherwise  used  only  in  poetry,  and  con- 
veys the  idea  of  haste.  Saul  is  bidden  to  move  on  quickly,  presumably 
on  account  of  his  father's  anxiety.  The  oak  of  Tabor  is  commonly 
identified  with  the  oak  of  Deborah,  which  according  to  Gen.  35:8 
was  close  to  Bethel,  where  was  an  ancient  sanctuary.  Skin  is  a 
vessel  to  hold  liquids  and  is  made  from  the  hide  of  an  animal;  its 
capacity  was  therefore  indicated  by  the  size  of  the  animal.  The 
meat,  bread  and  wine  show  that  the  three  men  were  going  to  Bethel 
for  a  sacred  feast. 

81 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


4.  bottle  ^  of  wine:  and  they  will  salute  thee,  and  give 
thee  two  loaves  of  bread;  which  thou  shalt  receive 

5.  of  their  hand.  After  that  thou  shalt  come  to  the  hill 
of  God,  where  is  the  garrison  of  the  PhiUs tines:  and  it 
shall  come  to  pass,  when  thou  art  come  thither  to 
the  city,  that  thou  shalt  meet  a  band  of  prophets 
coming  down  from  the  high  place  with  a  psaltery,  and 
a  timbrel,  and  a  pipe,  and  a  harp,  before  them;  and 

6.  they  shall  be  prophesying:  and  the  spirit  of  the  Lord 
will  come  mightily  upon  thee,  and  thou  shalt  prophesy 

1  Or  skin. 

4.  Loaves  has  no  corresponding  word  in  the  original,  but  is  prob- 
ably right.  The  bread  would  be  very  welcome  inasmuch  as  Saul's 
was  all  gone,  9:7,  and  may  be  intended  as  an  act  of  homage  suggest- 
ing the  kingly  estate,  and  therefore  Saul  is  directed  to  accept  it.  The 
salutation  on  the  other  hand  may  be  no  more  than  a  friendly  greeting. 
The  many  details  are  intended  to  enhance  the  value  of  the  sign. 

5  f.  The  third  sign  is  elaborated  because  of  the  part  the  prophets 
play  in  it,  because  of  the  marked  influence  on  Saul,  and  to  explain 
a  well  known  proverb,  vs.  12,  19  :  24.  Hill  of  God  marks  another 
stage  on  the  journey  home,  but  the  locality  cannot  be  identified. 
From  13  :  2  f.  Gibeah  of  Benjamin  may  be  meant.  Garrison  is 
doubtful;  others  argue  for  pillar  or  deputy,  which  the  word  may  also 
mean.  As  Jonathan  slew  this  thing,  it  is  most  probably  a  deputy^ 
13  : 3,  as  he  would  hardly  have  attacked  a  whole  garrison  single 
handed.  High  place  as  in  9  :  12  refers  to  a  sanctuary,  which  was 
probably  the  home  station  of  the  company  of  prophets.  This  is 
the  first  mention  of  the  prophetic  bands  or  guilds,  often  as  they  are 
mentioned  later.  For  further  light  on  this  order,  consult  my  Hebrew 
Prophet,  ch.  4.  Prophesying  may  easily  be  defined  in  general  terms 
from  the  context.  From  the  description  it  is  apparent  that  the  four 
musical  instruments  at  the  head  of  the  company  were  played  and 
the  rest  of  the  band  were  indulging  in  some  sort  of  vocal  exercises, 
possibly  some  wild  kind  of  chanting.  Violent  physical  exertions  were 
made,  cf.  19  :  24.  Come  mightily.  The  word  conveys  rather  the  idea 
of  suddenness  than  power;  therefore  rush  is  a  better  rendering,  cf.  Acts 
2  :  2  f.  Here  the  spirit  of  Jahveh  induces  a  prophetic  ecstacy.  An- 
other man.  There  is  an  intimation  that  the  change  will  be  permanent, 
cf.  vs.  7:  16  :  14. 

82 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


with  them,  and  shalt  be  turned  into  another  man. 

7.  And  let  it  be,  when  these  signs  are  come  unto  thee, 
that  thou  do  as  occasion  serve  thee;  for  God  is  with 

8.  thee.  And  thou  shalt  go  down  before  me  to  Gilgal; 
and,  behold,  I  will  come  down  unto  thee,  to  offer 
burnt  offerings,  and  to  sacrifice  sacrifices  of  peace 
offerings :  seven  days  shalt  thou  tarry,  till  I  come  unto 

9.  thee,  and  shew  thee  what  thou  shalt  do.  And  it  was 
so,  that  when  he  had  turned  his  back  to  go  from 
Samuel,  God  gave  him  another  heart:  and  all  those 
signs  came  to  pass  that  day. 

7.  As  occasion  serve  thee,  or  as  thy  hand  finds.  Saul  is  to  be  ready 
for  any  opportunity  that  comes  in  his  way.  He  has  been  anointed 
king;  the  signs  will  have  happened  which  prove  that  the  anointing  was 
of  God;  his  falling  into  the  prophetic  frenzy  is  proof  of  the  presence  of 
the  spirit  of  Jahveh.  To  make  efifective  the  will  of  God,  by  actually 
becoming  king,  he  must  seize  an  opportunity  to  perform  a  kingly  act, 
an  opportunity  that  comes  in  due  season,  c.  11.  The  judges  reached 
their  position  as  rulers  by  leading  an  uprising  of  the  people  against 
their  enemy.  It  was  in  the  same  way  that  Samuel  sees  the  kingdom 
must  be  won  by  Saul. 

Saul  among  the  prophets,  10  :  8-12. 

8.  Saul  is  directed  to  go  to  Gilgal,  where  Samuel  promises  to  join 
him  at  the  end  of  seven  days  to  ofifer  sacrifices  and  to  direct  him  what 
to  do.  It  is  apparent  that  these  injunctions  are  quite  inconsistent 
with  Samuel's  instructions  given  above.  Saul  was  given  an  absolutely 
free  hand  because  God  was  with  him,  and  he  was  to  act  when  the  oc- 
casion offered,  and  not  to  wait  for  Samuel  or  any  other  man.  The 
verse  is  regarded  as  an  interpolation  preparing  the  way  for  13  :  7-15. 
The  paternal  idea  is  akin  to  the  other  version  of  Saul's  appointment. 

9.  Another  heart  or  understanding  of  his  true  mission  in  life. 
Saul's  mind  was  given  a  new  idea  by  the  prophet,  and  one  that  would 
affect  his  whole  future.  The  clause  is  rejected  by  many  critics  on 
the  ground  that  the  change  in  Saul  was  to  follow  his  prophesying, 
v.  6.  The  Hebrew  phrase  is  unusual  and  awkward.  Came  to  pass. 
We  find  here  the  general  statement  that  all  of  Samuel's  predictions 
were  fulfilled  in  the  course  of  the  day,  but  in  the  narrative  following 
nothing  further  is  said  about  the  first  and  second  signs.  The  third 
only  is  described  at  length.    It  is  possible,  as  Smith  suggests,  that 

83 


I0:i0  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


10.  And  when  they  came  thither  to  the  hill,  behold,  a  band 
of  prophets  met  him;  and  the  spirit  of  God  came 

11,  mightily  ^  upon  him,  and  he  prophesied  among  them. 
And  it  came  to  pass,  when  all  that  knew  him  before- 

1  Heb.  rushed. 

some  of  the  story  has  been  lost;  but  it  may  be  that  only  that  sign 
is  detailed  which  had  a  marked  influence  upon  Saul. 

ID.  The  hill  =  hill  of  God,  in  v.  5.  He  prophesied  among  them, 
with  them  in  v.  6,  but  among  them,  or  more  literally  in  their  midst  con- 
veys the  true  idea.  Saul  was  surrounded  by  the  band  of  prophets 
indulging  in  their  exciting  rites,  and  soon  caught  the  contagion  and 
leaped  and  whirled  and  shouted  as  wildly  as  any  of  them.  Samuel's 
prediction  that  he  would  prophesy  predisposed  him  to  catch  the 
frenzy,  for  it  acted  as  a  suggestion.  A  fuller  description  of  Saul  in  the 
act  of  prophesying  is  found  in  19  :  24.  Such  unusual  actions  were  re- 
garded as  due  to  the  presence  of  the  spirit  of  God. 

1 1  f .  All  that  knew  him  beforetime.  The  place  where  Saul  met  the 
prophets  was  evidently  close  to  his  home;  his  family,  in  spite  of  his 
modest  declaration,  9  :  21,  was  a  prominent  one  in  his  neighborhood; 
therefore  it  is  not  surprising  that  at  this  point  some  of  Saul's  personal 
acquaintances  were  present;  but  whether  they  were  part  of  the  band  of 
prophets,  or  a  curious  crowd,  following  and  watching  the  prophetic 
rhapsodies,  it  is  impossible  to  say.  If  the  question  in  v.  12  is  authentic, 
the  latter  alternative  would  be  the  more  probable.  Who  is  their 
father?  This  phrase  breaks  the  connection,  and  is  often  interpreted 
as  a  gloss.  But  it  is  hard  to  see  why  any  scribe  should  work  it  into  the 
text  here,  little  connection  as  it  has.  It  cannot  refer  to  Saul's  father, 
as  G.  implies,  for  Saul's  parentage  was  well  known.  Father  may  be 
used  in  an  ecclesiastical  sense  and  means  the  chief  of  the  prophetic 
band.  Is  Saul  among  the  prophets?  The  people  that  knew  him  were 
naturally  surprised  to  see  him  indulging  in  such  antics  as  character- 
ized these  prophetic  bands.  It  would  be  quite  as  unusual  as  for  a 
Quaker  to  let  himself  go  at  an  evangelical  revival.  It  was  entirely 
out  of  keeping  with  Saul's  well  known  character.  We  need  not  assume 
with  Smith  that  Saul's  life  had  been  profligate  to  explain  the  strange 
company  he  was  now  keeping.  It  suffices  to  assume  that  he  was  re- 
served and  proud,  and  that  it  was  deemed  a  strange  lapse  of  dignity 
to  rave  with  the  prophets.  Later  these  prophets  were  rather  looked 
down  upon,  but  they  were  a  new  element  at  this  period.  Proverb. 
The  saying  is  traced  to  another  incident  in  19  :  24,  though  of  the  same 
kind;  it  was  applied  to  any  case  of  a  man  found  in  unexpected  com- 
pany. 

84 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


time  saw  that,  behold,  he  prophesied  with  the  prophets, 
then  the  people  said  one  to  another,  What  is  this  that 
is  come  unto  the  son  of  Kish?  Is  Saul  also  among  the 
12.  prophets?  And  one  of  the  same  place  ^  answered 
and  said.  And  who  is  their  ^  father?  Therefore  it 
became  a  proverb,  Is  Saul  also  among  the  prophets? 

13.  And  when  he  had  made  an  end  of  prophesying,  he  came 
to  the  high  place. 

14.  And  Saul's  uncle  said  unto  him  and  to  his  servant, 
Whither  went  ye?  And  he  said.  To  seek  the  asses: 
and  when  we  saw  that  they  were  not  found,  we  came 

15.  to  Samuel.     And  Saul's  uncle  said,  TeU  me,  I  pray 

16.  thee,  what  Samuel  said  unto  you.     And  Saul  said 

1  For  the  same  place  G.  has  ihem.  2  g.  his. 

Saul's  interview  with  his  uncle,  10  :  13-16. 

13.  The  high  place.  Saul  was  to  meet  the  prophets  coming  down 
from  the  high  place,  v.  5.  and  the  text  indicates  that  after  the  ecstacy 
was  over  he  went  on  up  to  the  sanctuary.  Wellhausen  reads  his 
home;  but  Saul  was  not  at  home,  for  his  uncle  knew  nothing  about  the 
journey,  as  he  certainly  would  if  he  had  been  at  Saul's  home.  He 
went  to  the  sanctuary  for  religious  purposes,  natural  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, and  found  his  uncle  there.  If  he  had  been  home,  the 
interview  would  naturally  have  been  with  his  father.  It  would  be 
better  to  read  with  Budde  after  G.  to  Gibeah,  Saul's  home  town,  in 
which  place  the  uncle  might  Hve  without  knowing  of  Saul's  wander- 
ings. 

14.  Saul's  uncle.  This  was  apparently  Ner,  the  father  of  Abner, 
14  :  50.  They  were  not  found  gives  poor  sense,  and  is  a  bad  trans- 
lation. The  phrase  is  literally,  ajid  we  saw  that  they  were  not  (when 
we  hunted  for  them),  or  more  freely  we  did  not  see  them. 

It  appears  that  Ner  knows  that  Samuel  is  a  seer  credited  with  power 
as  a  soothsayer,  and  he  was  curious  to  know  whether  valuable  informa- 
tion has  been  forthcoming.  The  fact  that  Ner  knows  about  Samuel 
has  given  rise  to  question  about  the  passage,  but  the  seer's  light  may 
not  have  been  so  hid  under  a  bushel  after  all.  If  Saul's  servant  is 
well  informed  about  Samuel,  his  uncle  might  be  too. 

16.  Plainly  does  not  express  the  idea  as  well  as  positively.  Saul 
gives  his  uncle  the  essential  information  for  which  he  asked.    Saul 

85 


17  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 

unto  his  uncle,  He  told  us  plainly  that  the  asses  were 
found.  But  concerning  the  matter  of  the  kingdom,^ 
whereof  Samuel  spake/  he  told  him  not. 

3.  The  later  story  continued,  10  :  17-27 

17.  And  Samuel  called  the  people  together  unto  the  Lord 

18.  to  Mizpah;  and  he  said  unto  the  children  of  Israel, 
Thus  saith  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel,  I  brought  up 
Israel  out  of  Egypt,  and  I  deHvered  you  out  of  the 
hand  of  the  Egyptians,  and  out  of  the  hand  of  all  the 

19.  kingdoms  that  oppressed  you:  but  ye  have  this  day 

1  Omit  with  G. 

had  gone  to  Samuel  to  learn  where  the  asses  were,  and  Samuel  told 
him  that  they  were  recovered,  and  that  serves  to  show  that  his 
powers  were  real.  The  matter  of  the  kingdom  was  a  profound  secret, 
even  from  the  servant,  and  Saul  rightly  withhold  any  word  about 
it.  It  follows  that  he  said  nothing  about  the  signs  or  his  indulgence 
in  the  prophetic  rites. 

At  a  national  assembly  which  Samuel  calls  at  Mizpah,  Saul  is 
chosen  by  lot  to  serve  as  king  of  Israel.  This  is  a  direct  continuation 
of  ch.  8,  where  Samuel  granted  the  request  of  the  elders  who  had  as- 
sembled to  demand  a  king.  Now  a  national  assembly  is  held  and 
the  promise  is  carried  out.    10  :  7-27. 

17.  Called.  The  Hebrew  has  a  peculiar  word  implying  distress. 
There  may  be  a  subtle  hint  of  Samuel's  distress  in  assembling  the 
people  to  perform  an  ofi&ce  contrary  to  the  will  of  God.  Mizpah. 
The  conference  with  the  elders  had  been  held  at  Ramah,  Samuel's 
home.  Now  a  more  sacred  place  is  chosen,  the  same  sacred  spot  as 
in  ch.  7  and  Judg.  20. 

18.  Samuel  repeats  to  the  whole  nation  the  objections  to  the  king- 
dom which  he  had  stated  to  the  elders  in  ch.  8.  The  kingdom  that 
oppressed  you.  Coming  after  Egypt  we  might  think  of  Og  the  king 
of  Bashan  and  Sihon  the  king  of  the  Amorites;  but  the  word  oppressed 
rather  limits  the  meaning  to  the  various  nations  whose  struggles 
with  Israel  are  recorded  in  the  book  of  Judges. 

19.  Rejected  God  by  demanding  a  king  to  take  the  place  of  his 
direct  rule.  The  elders  who  had  demanded  a  king  represented  the 
whole  nation  and  so  Samuel  holds  the  people  guilty.  Unto  him  can- 
not be  right.    The  elders  asked  the  king  of  Samuel,  not  of  God.    The 

86 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


rejected  your  God,  who  himseK  saveth  you  out  of  all 
your  calamities  and  your  distresses;  and  ye  have  said 
unto  him,  Nay,  but  set  a  king  over  us.  Now  therefore 
present  yourselves  before  the  Lord  by  your  tribes, 

20.  and  by  your  thousands.  So  Samuel  brought  all  the 
tribes  of  Israel  near,  and  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  was 

21.  taken.  And  he  brought  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  near 
by  their  famiHes,  and  the  family  of  the  Matrites  was 
taken:  and  Saul  the  son  of  Kish  was  taken;  but  when 

22.  they  ^  sought  him,  he  could  not  be  found.    Therefore 

'  G.  he,  \.  e.,  Samuel. 

ancient  versions  all  read  no,  which  is  interpolated  in  the  Revised 
version.  Before  the  Lord,  for  the  choice  was  to  be  made  by  the 
sacred  lot.  Thousands  is  a  term  used  for  a  subdivision  of  the  tribe, 
like  clan.  Judg.  6  :  15.  It  means  the  same  a.s  family  in  v.  21.  The 
meaning  must  be  that  the  people  were  to  come  by  tribes,  but  with 
each  tribe  arranged  by  clans  so  as  to  be  ready  for  the  second  casting  of 
the  lot.  It  is  not  stated  exactly  how  the  choosing  was  accomplished, 
for  brought  the  tribes  near,  v.  20,  is  indefinite  but  it  must  have  been 
done  by  names,  for  Saul  was  finally  chosen  though  he  was  not  pres- 
ent at  the  time  the  lot  fell  on  him. 

21.  Matrites  is  a  name  that  occurs  nowhere  else.  It  must  have 
been  the  clan  in  which  Kish  was  a  prominent  figure.  The  verse 
contains  an  obvious  gap  which  must  be  supplied  from  G.  and  he 
brought  near  the  family  of  the  Matrites  man  by  man,  and  Saul,  etc. 
Sought  him,  to  anoint  him  king,  therefore  the  Greek  reading  he  sought 
him  is  preferable. 

22.  A  further  inquiry  was  necessary  on  account  of  Saul's  absence, 
but  the  question  in  the  text  is  too  vague  to  meet  the  situation. 
Moreover,  the  answer  implies  a  direct  question  about  Saul.  The 
people  were  at  the  moment  concerned  only  with  the  whereabouts  of 
the  king  designated  by  the  lot.  G.  preserves  the  true  form :  has  the 
man  come  here,  i.  e.,  has  the  chosen  one  gathered  with  the  people,  or 
is  he  absent  as  David  was  later?  Hid  himself.  Smith  says  out  of 
modesty,  similarly  Budde;  but  if  Saul  had  hid  himself  out  of  modesty 
because  he  was  chosen  king,  he  must  have  been  present  when  the 
lot  was  cast,  and  in  that  case  all  of  his  acquaintances  would  know 
that  he  was  near  by,  and  there  would  be  no  need  to  inquire  of  God. 
The  text  may  be  rendered,  he  is  hidden  among  the  stu_ff,  not  meaning 

87 


10123  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


they  ^  asked  of  the  Lord  further,  Is  there  yet  a  man 
to  come  hither?    And  the  Lord  answered,  Behold,  he 

23.  hath  hid  himself  among  the  stuff.  And  they  ran  and 
fetched  him  thence;  and  when  he  stood  among  the 
people,  he  was  higher  than  any  of  the  people  from  his 

24.  shoulders  and  upward.  And  Samuel  said  to  all  the 
people.  See  ye  him  whom  the  Lord  hath  chosen,  that 
there  is  none  like  him  among  all  the  people?  And  all 
the  people  shouted,  and  said,   God  save  the  king. 

25.  Then  Samuel  told  the  people  the  manner  of  the  king- 
dom, and  wrote  it  in  a  book,  and  laid  it  up  before  the 
Lord.    And  Samuel  sent  all  the  people  away,  every 

26.  man  to  his  house.  And  Saul  also  went  to  his  house 
to  Gibeah;  and  there  went  with  him  the  host,^  whose 

1  G.  Samuel.  -  G.  the  sons  of  valor. 

that  Saul  had  gone  into  concealment  after  the  lots  were  cast,  but 
that  he  had  been  out  of  sight  among  the  impedimenta  of  the  company. 
He  may  have  been  taking  care  of  the  supplies  of  his  own  family. 

24.  None  like  him.  Saul's  great  size  would  make  him  particularly 
desirable  as  a  leader  in  war;  cf.  the  terror  inspired  by  Goliath's  im- 
mense stature,  ch.  17.  God  save  the  king  is  the  corresponding  Eng- 
lish idiom:  the  Heb.  is  an  exact  equivalent  to  the  French  form  vive 
le  roi. 

25.  Manner  of  the  kingdom.  This  refers  to  Samuel's  forecast 
of  what  the  king  would  do,  8  : 1 1  ff.  The  prediction  was  written  and 
preserved  to  serve  as  a  witness  against  the  people  when  they  cried 
out  on  account  of  the  oppression.  It  is  held  that  by  many  the  rest 
of  the  chapter  is  a  later  addition  to  make  a  suitable  connection  with 
c.  II,  in  which  Saul  appears  as  a  private  citizen.  The  narrative  does 
not  contain  anything  unsuitable  in  itself. 

26.  To  his  house,  for  there  was  no  other  place  for  Saul  to  go.  There 
was  no  state  capital,  or  palace,  or  throne.  The  host  or  army  implies 
rather  more  of  an  organization  than  existed  at  the  time.  The  Greek 
reading  contrasts  well  with  sons  of  Belial  in  v.  27.  Saul  the  chosen 
of  the  Lord  was  followed  to  his  home  by  a  company  of  valiant  men 
whom  he  could  readily  organize  into  an  army. 

88 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  1112 


27.  hearts  God  had  touched.  But  certain  sons  of  Behal 
said,  How  shall  this  man  save  us?  And  they  despised 
him,  and  brought  him  no  present.  But  he  held  his 
peace. 

4.  The  Earlier  Story,  Continued,  Ch.  11 

II.  Then   Nahash    the    Ammonite    came    up,    and   en- 
camped against  Jabesh-gilead:  and  all  the  men  of 
Jabesh  said  unto  Nahash,  Make  a  covenant  with  us, 
2.  and  we  will  serve  thee.    And  Nahash  the  Ammonite 

27.  Sons  of  Belial,  cf.  i  :  16.  These  men  are  deemed  worthless 
because  they  stand  in  opposition  to  the  majority  of  the  people,  and 
yet  their  position  is  essentially  the  same  as  Samuel's,  but  Samuel 
accepted  the  counsel  of  God,  however  grudgingly,  but  these  people 
did  not.  We  must  suppose  either  that  the  demand  for  a  king  was 
not  unamimous,  or  that  these  men  belonged  to  another  tribe  and 
were  jealous  of  Benjamin's  glory.  Present.  Offerings  would  be  due 
to  the  king  even  though  taxes  were  not  imposed.  Held  his  peace. 
The  correct  rendering  is  he  was  like  one  holding  his  peace,  and  this 
does  not  fit  here.  It  is  better  to  read  as  G.  and  it  catne  to  pass  after 
a  mo7ith,  and  to  preface  to  ch.  11. 

Saul  gathers  an  army  and  relieves  Jabesh-gilead,  11  :  i-ii.  Saul 
had  been  sent  home  to  await  an  opportunity.  After  about  a  month 
{of.  note  on  10  :  27),  Nahash  the  Ammonite  afforded  him  the  desired 
chance. 

1.  Nahash  was  the  king  of  Ammon,  12  :  12.  Later  he  showed 
some  favor  to  David,  2  Sam.  10  :  2.  Encamped  against  is  equivalent 
to  besieged  as  the  inhabitants  evidently  could  not  get  away.  Jabesh- 
gilead  lay  on  the  east  of  the  Jordan.  The  town  was  apparently 
peculiarly  bound  to  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  Judg.  21  :  8  £f.,  and  by  this 
act  to  Saul  31  :  11-13.  Malie  a  covenant.  The  Jabesh-gileadites 
realized  that  they  were  no  match  for  the  powerful  force  which  had 
besieged  them,  and  therefore  they  ask  for  terms  of  surrender.  It 
appears  from  the  condition  imposed  by  Nahash  that  their  main 
concern  was  to  save  their  lives.  A  conquered  people  would  be  likely 
to  be  either  massacred  or  sold  as  slaves. 

2.  Your  right  eyes  be  put  out.  Josephus  understood  the  motive 
to  be  the  rendering  of  the  men  unfit  for  war.  Nahash  explains  his 
object  quite  differently.    Mutilation  of  prisoners  is  not  uncommon 


II :  3  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


said  unto  them,  On  this  condition  will  I  make  it  with 
you,  that  all  your  right  eyes  be  put  out;  and  I  will  lay 

3.  it  for  a  reproach  upon  all  Israel.  And  the  elders^ 
of  Jabesh  said  unto  him,  Give  us  seven  days'  respite, 
that  we  may  send  messengers  unto  all  the  borders  of 
Israel:  and  then,  if  there  be  none  to  save  us,  we  will 

4.  come  out  to  thee.  Then  came  the  messengers  to 
Gibeah  of  Saul,  and  spake  these  words  in  the  ears  of 
the  people:  and  all  the  people  hfted  up  their  voice, 

5.  and  wept.    And,  behold,  Saul  came  following  the  oxen 

1  G.  men  as  in  v.  1. 

among  primitive  peoples,  Judg.  i  :  6  f.,  2  Kings  25  :  7.  Reproach  or 
disgrace,  for  the  infliction  upon  the  people  of  one  town  would  be  a 
sign  of  the  impotence  of  Israel.  Israel's  fortunes  at  the  time  were 
in  a  desperate  state. 

3.  Seven  days'  respite.  As  Jabesh  was  on  the  east  of  the  Jordan, 
and  far  away  from  the  center  of  Israel,  it  would  take  some  time  to 
make  the  rounds  in  their  effort  to  procure  assistance, 

4.  Nahash's  acceptance  of  the  counter  proposal  is  implied.  An  ad- 
dition in  one  of  the  Greek  texts  suggests  that  there  is  a  gap  in  the  nar- 
rative here.  That  text  rounds  out  the  story  by  sa>ang:  and  the  men 
of  Jabesh-gilead  sent  forth  messengers.  Gibeah  of  Saul.  G.  to 
Gibeah  for  Said,  but  that  is  obviously  to  harmonize  better  with 
8,  10  :  17-27;  these  messengers  knew  nothing  about  Saul.  Of  Saul 
reflects  the  point  of  view  of  a  later  day,  for  Saul's  name  would 
no  more  be  attached  to  the  town  now  than  in  ch.  9.  It  is  probable 
that  the  messengers  went  directly  to  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  with  whom 
they  had  affiliations  {cf.  note  on  v.  i),  and  Gibeah  may  have  been 
the  first  place  where  these  heavy  tidings  were  told.  Wept.  Evidently 
the  men  of  Gibeah  felt  that  they  were  helpless.  The  fact  that  Nahash 
bad  accepted  the  terms  of  the  men  of  Jabesh  shows  his  confidence 
that  succor  could  not  be  found  in  Israel;  but  he  did  not  know  of  the 
oil  that  had  been  poured  upon  the  head  of  Saul  by  the  seer  of  Rama. 
The  Israelites  were  plainly  at  this  time  but  a  feeble  folk,  and  there 
was  no  system  of  regular  concerted  action  among  the  tribes. 

5.  Following  the  oxen.  Saul  had  evidently  been  working  in  the 
field,  probably  plowing.  The  messengers  had  not  asked  for  him,  his 
own  townspeople  did  not  tell  him  the  cause  of  the  commotion  until 
he  asked.  Nobody  thought  of  Saul  as  a  king,  and  this  story  is  mani- 
festly quite  independent  of  10:  17-27. 

90 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  II :  8 


out  of  the  field;  and  Saul  said,  What  aileth  the  people 
that  they  weep?    And  they  told  him  the  words  of  the 

6.  men  of  Jabesh.  And  the  spirit  of  God  came  mightily  ^ 
upon  Saul  when  he  heard  those  words,  and  his  anger 

7.  was  kindled  greatly.  And  he  took  a  yoke  of  oxen, 
and  cut  them  in  pieces,  and  sent  them  throughout 
all  the  borders  of  Israel  by  the  hand  of  messengers, 
saying,  Whosoever  cometh  not  forth  after  Saul  and 
after  Samuel,  so  shall  it  be  done  unto  his  oxen.  And 
the  dread  of  the  Lord  fell  on  the  people,  and  they 

8.  came  out  as  one  m.an.  And  he  numbered  them  in 
Bezek;  and  the  children  of  Israel  were  three  hundred 

1  Or  rushed. 

6.  The  Spirit  of  God  leads  men  to  do  many  things;  it  had  brought 
on  the  ecstatic  state,  10  :  10,  now  it  rouses  Saul  to  anger  and  to  action. 
He  sees  now  the  occasion  for  which  Samuel  had  bid  him  wait. 

7.  Cut  them  in  pieces.  The  sending  of  such  pieces  seems  to  be  a 
regular  means  of  calling  the  people  to  war,  cf.  the  case  of  the  concubine 
whose  body  was  thus  disposed  of,  Judg.  19  :  29.  Robertson  Smith 
supposes  this  to  have  had  originally  a  sacramental  sense  {Religion  of 
the  Semites,  383),  but  in  the  case  before  us  the  purpose  is  plainly  to 
convey  a  threat.  Messengers.  The  Hebrew  has  the  messengers  im- 
plying that  Saul  employed  for  his  purpose  the  men  who  had  come 
from  Jabesh-gilead.  This  is  probably  correct,  for  these  messengers 
did  not  return  until  Saul's  army  was  assembled.  And  after  Samuel 
appears  to  be  an  addition  to  harmonize  with  the  later  conception  of 
Samuel's  supreme  leadership.  Samuel  told  Saul  to  act  when  occasion 
offered,  and  never  intimated  that  he  would  join  him.  In  this  early 
source  Samuel  is  conceived  as  a  seer,  not  as  a  warrior.  So  shall  it  be 
done.  Saul  threatens  to  slay  the  oxen  of  all  Israelites  who  do  not 
gather  for  the  war.  The  pieces  of  flesh  carried  by  the  messengers 
add  a  touch  of  realism  to  the  menace.  Dread  of  the  Lord,  i.  e.,  from 
the  Lord.  Saul  had  not  threatened  in  the  name  of  Jahveh,  but  he 
was  acting  for  him,  and  so  the  fear  that  Saul's  threat  inspired  was 
terror  of  the  Lord.  As  one  man,  all  acting  from  the  same  impulse  of 
fear. 

8.  Numbered,  or  better  mustered,  as  the  word  refers  to  the  gath- 
ering of  the  forces,  not  to  counting  them.  Bezek  is  mentioned  else- 

91 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


thousand,  and  the  men  of  Judah  thirty  ^  thousand. 
9.  And  they  ^  said  unto  the  messengers  that  came,  Thus 
shall  ye  say  unto  the  men  of  Jabesh-gilead,  To-morrow, 
by  the  time  the  sun  is  hot,  ye  shall  have  deliverance. 
And  the  messengers  came  and  told  the  men  of  Jabesh; 

10.  and  they  were  glad.     Therefore  the  men  of  Jabesh 
said,^  To-morrow  we  will  come  out  unto  you,  and  ye 

11.  shall  do  with  us  all  that  seemeth  good  unto  you.    And 

1  G.  seventy  2  q  rightly  he.  3  G.  to  Nahash  the  Ammonite. 

where  only  in  Judg.  1:4.  It  has  been  located  between  Shechem  and 
Beth-shean,  and  therefore  nearly  opposite  Jabesh-gilead  across  the 
Jordan.  When  Saul  sent  out  his  messengers,  he  probably  appointed 
the  place  for  the  warriors  to  assemble,  and  the  time,  which  must  have 
been  very  short  in  view  of  the  seven  days'  respite.  The  figures  are 
late  and  exaggerated.  Probably  v.  8b  is  a  gloss.  Judah  was  not  in- 
volved in  this  affair. 

9.  To-morrow.  It  was  probably  the  sixth  day  since  the  armistice 
had  been  arranged,  for  Saul  would  take  as  much  time  in  preparation 
as  possible,  and  there  was  at  best  but  a  short  space  available.  The 
time  the  sun  is  hot  indicates  a  period  fairly  early  in  the  morning, 
perhaps  an  hour  or  two  after  sunrise,  cf.  Neh.  7  :  s-  Were  glad.  Saul 
did  not  send  the  messengers  back  until  they  were  able  to  report  that 
they  had  seen  an  ample  force  collected  for  the  rescue.  The  Jabesh- 
gileadites  therefore  had  good  ground  for  joy. 

10.  The  messengers  reached  home  the  same  day  and  their  fellows 
promise  to  surrender  the  very  time  at  which  deliverance  is  expected. 
The  declaration  to  Nahash  indicates  that  their  mission  was  a  failure, 
and  that  as  he  had  forecasted,  help  could  not  be  found.  The  object 
of  the  deception,  and  its  justification,  was  to  throw  the  enemy  off  his 
guard  so  that  Saul's  force  could  catch  him  unprepared. 

1 1 .  And  it  was  so,  better  the  common  and  it  came  to  pass.  On  the 
morrow.  Saul's  army  moved  from  Bezek  to  Jabesh  in  the  night, 
but  as  the  Jewish  day  began  at  sunset  the  phrase  is  correct.  Three 
companies.  Such  an  arrangement  was  the  common  method  of  attack, 
13  :  17,  Judg.  7  :  16,  9  :  43,  Job  1:17.  The  object  was  to  strike  on 
three  sides,  surrounding  the  foe  so  that  escape  was  impossible.  The 
morning  watch  was  the  third  and  last  watch  of  the  night,  about  2  to 
6  a.  m.  The  battle  began  presumably  about  daybreak  and  lasted  till 
about  noon,  for  the  heat  of  the  day  indicates  a  later  hour  than  the 
time  when  the  sim  is  hot,  v.  9.    Saul  took  the  Ammonites  unawares; 

92 


THE   FIRST   BOOK   OF   SAMUEL  Ii:i3 


it  was  so  on  the  morrow,  that  Saul  put  the  people  in 
three  companies;  and  they  came  into  the  midst  of  the 
camp  ^  in  the  m^orning  watch,  and  smote  the  Ammon- 
ites until  the  heat  of  the  day:  and  it  came  to  pass, 
that  they  which  remained  were  scattered,  so  that  two 

12.  of  them  were  not  left  together.  And  the  people  said 
unto  Samuel,  Who  is  he  that  said.  Shall  Saul  reign 
over  us?  -  bring  the  men,  that  we  may  put  them  to 

13.  death.    And  Saul  said.  There  shall  not  a  man  be  put 

1  G.  oj  the  Ammonilcs.  -  G.  Saul  shall  not  reign  over  us. 

they  were  fallen  upon  suddenly  at  dawn  on  all  sides,  being  probably 
aroused  from  their  sleep  by  the  assault;  the  Jabesh-gileadites  doubtless 
emerged  from  the  city  and  shared  in  the  slaughter.  Remained  were 
scattered.  The  passage  must  be  rendered:  and  it  came  to  pass  that 
there  were  survivors,  and  they  were  scattered.  There  were  some  who  sur- 
vived the  deadly  onslaught,  breaking  through  the  attacking  lines, 
but  these  were  pursued  so  relentlessly,  that  only  those  escaped  who 
were  alone  and  so  could  successfully  hide  from  their  pursuers. 

Saul  becomes  king  of  Israel,  11  :  12-15. 

This  section  has  been  worked  over  by  compilers  until  it  is  scarcely 
recognizable,  and  the  whole  is  questioned  by  many  scholars.  There 
seems  to  be  a  reference  to  the  disaffection  in  10  :  27,  which  does  not 
fit  into  this  story.  The  original  must  have  related  in  a  simple  way 
how  the  people  offered  the  kingdom  to  their  victorious  leader  as  it 
had  formerly  been  given  to  Gideon  under  similar  circumstances, 
Judg.  9  :  22.  In  the  original  story  Samuel  could  have  had  no  place, 
for  he  had  already  anointed  Saul,  and  thus  his  work  was  done;  v.  15 
is  usually  regarded  as  authentic. 

12.  Unto  Samuel  has  probably  been  added  for  harmonistic  pur- 
poses. Shall  Saul  reign  over  us?  implies  that  at  the  close  of  Saul's 
brilliant  campaign,  the  people  proposed  to  make  him  king  because  he 
had  showed  himself  to  be  what  was  sorely  needed,  a  capable  leader  in 
war,  but  that  there  was  some  opposition  which  it  was  proposed  to 
crush  summarily.  It  is  perfectly  possible  to  translate  as  an  affirma- 
tion. Said  shall  reign  over  us,  in  which  case  a  minority  proposed 
Saul's  elevation,  and  they  were  regarded  as  traitors  worthy  of  death. 

13.  As  usually  interpreted  Saul's  decree  shows  magnanimity  to- 
wards those  opposed  to  his  rule,  a  very  different  spirit  from  that 
shown  later  towards  David.  If  the  clause  in  v.  12  is  interpreted 
affirmatively,  then  Saul's  words  mean  that  he  will  brook  no  opposition 

93 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


to  death  this  day:  for  to-day  the  Lord  hath  wrought 
deUverance  in  Israel. 

14.  Then  said  Samuel  to  the  people,  Come  and  let  us  go 

15.  to  Gilgal,  and  renew  the  kingdom  there.  And  all  the 
people  went  to  Gilgal;  and  there  they  made  Saul  king 
before  the  Lord  in  Gilgal;  and  there  they  sacrificed 
sacrifices  of  peace  offerings  before  the  Lord;  and  there 
Saul  and  all  the  men  of  Israel  rejoiced  greatly. 

5.  Conclusion  of  the  later  account  of  SauVs  elevation y 
Ch.  12.    (C/.  8.  10:17-27) 

12.  And   Samuel  said   unto  all  Israel,   Behold,  I  have 

hearkened  unto  your  voice  in  all  that  ye  said  unto 

2.  me,  and  have  made  a  king  over  you.     And  now, 

from  even  the  large  number  standing  against  the  kingdom.  Saul 
said.  If  our  passage  were  authentic  we  should  have  Samuel  as  is 
found  in  some  Greek  texts.  The  Lord  hath  wrought.  The  Lord  has 
shown  his  favor  to  Saul  and  to  Israel,  and  therefore  there  must  be 
no  civil  strife,  or  opposition  to  the  plain  will  of  God,  as  shown  in 
this  deliverance,  that  Saul  shall  be  king. 

14.  Renew  the  kingdom  implies  a  previous  act  of  a  similar  kind, 
thus  showing  the  verse  to  be  an  editorial  addition. 

15.  After  the  battle  the  kingdom  was  offered  to  Saul  and  of  course 
accepted  by  him.  There  needed  only  the  pubHc  acclamation.  There 
is  no  mention  of  anointing,  save  in  the  edited  text  of  G.  because 
this  act  had  already  been  performed,  10  :  i. 

Samuel's  farewell  address,  ch.  12. 

In  laying  down  his  office  in  view  of  the  newly  appointed  king, 
Samuel  forces  an  admission  of  the  righteousness  of  his  rule;  he  points 
out  how  Jahveh  has  helped  the  people  in  the  past;  and  assures  them 
that  his  help  will  be  continued,  in  spite  of  their  wrong  in  demanding 
a  king,  a  wrong  attested  by  a  sign,  if  they  serve  him  faithfully.  The 
passage  represents  Samuel  as  the  absolute  ruler  of  the  people,  and 
so  is  connected  with  7,  8,  10  :  17-27.  It  has  often  been  compared 
with  Joshua's  farewell  address,  Josh.  24. 

I.  Unto  all  IsraeL  In  10  :  25  f.  the  people  had  been  sent  to  their 
homes,  while  here  they  are  all  in  the  presence  of  the  great  leader. 
Such  notices,  however,  are  due  to  the  compiler  to  fit  his  peculiar 

94 


THE   FIRST  BOOK   OF   SAMUEL  12! 


behold,  the  king  walketh  before  you:  and  I  am  old 
and  gray-headed;  and,  behold,  my  sons  are  with  you: 
and  I  have  walked  before  you  from  my  youth  unto 
this  day.  Here  I  am:  witness  against  me  before  the 
Lord,  and  before  his  anointed:  whose  ox  have  I  taken? 
or  whose  ass  have  I  taken?  or  whom  have  I  defrauded? 
whom  have  I  oppressed?  or  of  whose  hand  have  I 
taken  a  ransom  to  blind  mine  eyes  therewith?  and  I 


combinations.  This  address  follows  lo  :  24  most  fitly.  Ye  said 
unto  me  shows  that  the  narrative  belongs  to  that  document  in  which 
the  people  had  demanded  a  king. 

2.  I  am  old  and  gray-headed.  This  statement  agrees  with  the 
corresponding  picture  of  Samuel,  8:5.  There  is  no  intimation  in 
c.  9  that  Samuel  was  old.  My  sons  are  with  you.  After  what  the 
people  had  said  about  his  sons  in  ch.  8,  it  is  surprising  that  Samuel 
should  mention  them  here.  Smith  suggests  that  the  presence  of 
these  adult  sons  reenforces  the  idea  of  Samuel's  age.  But  grown 
sons  do  not  necessarily  involve  decrepitude  in  the  father.  The 
meaning  is  probably  that  another  generation  is  to  the  fore,  and  the 
aged  Samuel  is  rejected  as  belonging  to  the  past.  Walked  before 
is  used  twice  in  this  verse  to  convey  the  idea  of  leadership.  From 
my  youth  connects  this  narrative  with  a  part  of  the  section  chs.  1-3 
in  which  Samuel  became  a  national  figure  while  stUl  young.  Unto 
this  day  indicates  rather  pathethically  the  end  of  the  old  man's  ad- 
ministration. 

3.  Before  the  Lord  is  like  our  expression  under  oath.  The  anointed 
is  Saul  the  newly  made  king;  he  stands  parallel  to  Jahveh,  because 
he  is  Jahveh's  representative.  Whose  ox.  The  questions  asked  sug- 
gest the  sort  of  things  that  were  too  commonly  done  by  judges. 
Ransom  is  a  technical  term,  especially  referring  to  a  sum  paid  in 
expiation  of  a  murder.  Samuel  then  means  that  he  has  never  allowed 
a  murderer  to  purchase  his  freedom  from  the  penalty  belonging  to 
his  crime.  G.  reads  ransom  and  a  pair  of  shoes,  which  in  spite  of 
Am.  2  :  6  is  an  anticlimax.  G.  lacks  the  clause  to  blind  mine  eyes 
therewith,  but  has  for  one  part  a  pair  of  shoes  as  explained  above 
and  for  the  rest  testify  against  me.  The  latter  reading  is  a  good  in- 
troduction to  the  last  clause:  after  making  his  sweeping  challenge, 
Samuel  says,  establish  against  me  a  single  case  in  which  any  unlawful 
perquisite  has  come  into  my  hand,  ajid  I  will  pay  it  back.  Restitution 
was  a  common  penalty  in  Hebrew  law. 

95 


12;  4  THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


4.  will  restore  it  you.  And  they  said,  Thou  hast  not  de- 
frauded us,  nor  oppressed  us,  neither  hast  thou  taken 

5.  aught  of  any  man's  hand.  And  he  ^  said  unto  them,^ 
The  Lord  is  witness  against  you,  and  his  anointed  is 
witness  this  day,  that  ye  have  not  found  aught  in  my 

6.  hand.  And  they  said,  He  is  witness.  And  Samuel 
said  unto  the  people.  It  is  the  Lord  that  appointed 
Moses  and  Aaron,  and  that  brought  your  fathers  up 

7.  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt.  Now  therefore  stand  still, 
that  I  may  plead  with  you  before  the  Lord  concerning 
all  the  righteous  acts  of  the  Lord,  which  he  did  to 

8.  you  and  to  your  fathers.  When  Jacob  was  ^  come  into 
Egypt,^  and  your  fathers  cried  unto  the  Lord,  then 

'  G.  Samuel.  ^  Q_  (Jie  people.  ^  G.  Jacob  and  his  sons  were.  *  G.  adds: 

and  the  Egyptians  oppressed  Ihetn. 

4.  Samuel  is  pronounced  free  of  wrong,  the  people  partly  quoting 
his  words,  partly  summarizing. 

5.  Witness  against  hardly  conveys  the  right  sense,  for  as  the 
people  acquitted  Samuel  of  blame,  there  could  be  no  witness  against 
them.  The  meaning  is  that  Jahveh  is  witness  to  their  words,  and  will 
be  against  them  if  they  ever  bring  charges  against  Samuel,  as  for  ex- 
ample when  he  is  dead.  Jahveh  was  a  witness  to  the  public  declara- 
tion that  the  people  had  not  found  aught  in  his  hand,  that  is  any- 
thing wrongfully  taken  from  another. 

6.  Even  with  the  amplification  in  our  version  the  verse  has  no 
connection.  In  the  Greek  text  it  becomes  the  solemn  ending  to  the 
justification  of  Samuel:  Jahveh  that  appointed  Moses,  etc,  is  witness. 

7.  Stand  still  does  not  convey  the  right  idea.  Samuel  is  to  bring 
an  indictment  against  the  people,  therefore  we  should  render  stand 
forth,  or  take  your  stand.  The  people  could  not  accuse  their  deposed 
leader,  but  he  could  accuse  them,  and  so  calls  upon  them  to  take 
their  stand  for  defense.  Plead  with  you  or  much  better,  bring 
charges  against  you.  The  colorless  rendering  of  R.V.  is  made  neces- 
sary by  the  gap  in  the  text  supplied  by  G.  which  reads,  /  will  relate 
to  you,  instead  of  concerning. 

8.  Made  them  dwell  has  as  its  subject  Moses  and  Aaron,  but 
these  leaders  did  not  bring  the  people  to  this  place.  With  G.  we 
should  read  he  [Jahveh]  made  them  dwell  in  this  place. 

96 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  12  111 


the  Lord  sent  Moses  and  Aaron,  who  brought  forth 
your  fathers  out  of  Egypt,  and  made  them  to  dwell  in 
9.  this  place.  But  they  forgat  the  Lord  their  God,  and 
he  sold  them  into  the  hand  of  Sisera,  captain  of  the 
host  ^  of  Hazor,  and  into  the  hand  of  the  Phihstines, 
and  into  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Moab,  and  they 

10.  fought  against  them.  And  they  cried  unto  the  Lord, 
and  said.  We  have  sinned,  because  we  have  forsaken 
the  Lord,  and  have  served  the  Baalim  and  the 
Ashtaroth:  but  now  deliver  us  out  of  the  hand  of  our 

11.  enemies,  and  we  will  serve  thee.    And  the  Lord  sent 

1  G.  adds  of  Jahin  the  king. 

9.  Sold  is  a  peculiar  term  in  this  connection,  and  literally  of  course 
is  incorrect.  The  word  is  frequently  employed  in  the  same  con- 
struction, Judg.  2  :  14,  3:8.  The  idea  is  based  on  the  practice 
of  selling  captives  as  slaves.  Philistines  is  named  in  the  wrong  place 
chronologically,  as  these  people  were  Israel's  latest  enemies.  The 
narrative  implies  that  the  deliverance  from  the  Philistines  was  com- 
plete and  thus  shows  its  affinity  to  ch  7, 

II.  Sedan  is  never  mentioned  elsewhere,  and  the  name  is  cer- 
tainly wrong,  for  there  are  enumerated  here  only  the  conspicuous 
deliverers.  Some  have  followed  G.  adopting  Barak  who  overthrew 
Sisera,  and  in  view  of  the  mention  of  that  king  in  v.  9.  the  guess  is 
quite  probably  correct.  Inasmuch  as  the  king  of  Moab  is  also  named 
among  the  oppressors,  Ehud  may  be  the  hero  intended.  Samuel 
could  hardly  thus  allude  to  himself.  The  presence  of  the  name  is 
explained  as  due  to  the  fact  that  the  late  writer  who  composed  this 
address  forgot  that  Samuel  was  speaking.  One  text  of  G.  reads 
Samson,  which  may  be  a  correction,  but  it  may  be  right  as  the  Philis- 
tines, with  whom  Samson  forgot,  are  named  in  v.  9.  In  any  case 
the  list  of  heroes  should  correspond  with  the  list  of  oppressors  from 
whom  the  heroes  delivered  Israel.  If  the  list  of  nations  is  correct, 
the  heroes  should  be  Barak,  Samson  and  Ehud.  In  safety.  Samuel 
cites  cases  enough  to  show  that  Jahveh  sent  his  servants  to  rescue 
Israel  whenever  they  cried  out  for  help  in  their  distress,  and  that 
each  succeeding  oppression  was  due  to  the  fact  that  Israel  never 
learned  its  lesson,  but  returned  to  v.'rongdoing  the  moment  they 
were  safe. 

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12  57  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 

Jerubbaal,  and  Bedan/  and  Jephthah,  and  Samuel, 
and  delivered  you  out  of  the  hand  of  your  enemies  on 

12.  every  side,  and  ye  dwelled  in  safety.  And  when  ye 
saw  that  Nahash  the  king  of  the  children  of  Ammon 
came  against  you,  ye  said  unto  me,  Nay,  but  a  king 
shall  reign  over  us:  when  the  Lord  your  God  was  your 

13.  king.  Now  therefore  behold  the  king  whom  ye  have 
chosen,^  and  whom  ye  have  asked  for:  ^  and,  behold, 

14.  the  Lord  hath  set  a  king  over  you.  If  ye  will  fear  the 
Lord,  and  serve  him,  and  hearken  unto  his  voice, 
and  not  rebel  against  the  commandment  of  the  Lord, 
and  both  ye  and  also  the  king  that  reigneth  over  you 

15.  be  followers  of  the  Lord  your  God,  well:  but  if  ye  will 
not  hearken  unto  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  but  rebel 
against  the  commandment  of  the  Lord,  then  shall 

1  G.  Barak.  2  Omitted  in  G. 

12.  The  statement  here  is  very  inaccurate  in  several  respects. 
Nahash  never  attacked  Israel  as  a  whole,  but  only  a  small  town 
across  the  Jordan;  when  he  did  invest  Jabesh-gilead,  nobody  asked 
for  a  king,  but  the  besieged  sought  for  warriors  to  come  to  their 
relief;  the  people  asked  for  a  king  in  ch.  8,  because  Samuel  was  old 
and  his  sons  corrupt.  The  writer  has  introduced  the  incident  to 
harmonize  with  the  story  in  c.  11. 

13.  The  verse  is  redimdant,  and  the  latter  part  is  explained  as 
an  exegetica]  gloss. 

14.  We  have  an  elaborate  protasis,  but  the  necessary  apodosis 
is  lacking,  and  is  but  weakly  supplied  by  the  interpolated  well.  It 
is  much  better  to  read  with  G,  (Lucian's  text) :  then  he  will  succour 
you.  That  conclusion  agrees  better  with  v.  15  than  Smith's  proposal 
then  ye  shall  live.  The  people  had  not  died  under  oppression;  their 
dread  was  bondage,  not  death. 

15.  The  antithesis  is  not  complete,  as  some  of  the  terms  of  v.  14 
are  lacking.  As  it  was  against  your  fathers  cannot  be  wrested  from 
the  text,  which  can  be  rendered  only  and  against  your  fathers.  This 
translation  is  absurd,  and  we  must  read  with  G.  and  against  your 
king  to  destroy  you,  and  thus  we  have  sense  and  harmony  with  v.  14. 

98 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


the  hand  of  the  Lord  be  against  you,  as  it  was  against 

1 6.  your  fathers.  Now  therefore  stand  still  and  see  this 
great  thing,  which  the  Lord  will  do  before  your  eyes. 

17.  Is  it  not  wheat  harvest  to-day?  I  will  call  unto  the 
Lord,  that  he  may  send  thunder  and  rain;  and  ye 
shall  know  and  see  that  your  wickedness  is  great, 
which  ye  have  done  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  in  asking 

18.  you  a  king.  So  Samuel  called  unto  the  Lord;  and 
the  Lord  sent  thunder  and  rain  that  day:  and  all  the 

19.  people  greatly  feared  the  Lord  and  Samuel.  And  all 
the  people  said  unto  Samuel,  Pray  for  thy  servants 
unto  the  Lord  thy  God,  that  we  die  not:  for  we  have 

20.  added  unto  all  our  sins  this  evil,  to  ask  us  a  king.    And 

16.  This  great  thing  is  the  thunderstorm  described  in  v.  18. 

17.  Thunder,  literally  voices.  The  thunder  is  called  the  voice  of 
Jahveh  in  Ps.  29.  Ye  shall  know  and  see.  The  verbs  are  imperatives 
and  it  is  better  to  render  literally  and  know  and  see.  A  thunderstorm 
is  of  course  a  natural  phenomenon,  but  it  was  to  serve  as  a  divinely 
given  sign  that  Israel  had  committed  a  sin  in  asking  a  king,  a  point 
Samuel  never  wearies  of  driving  home.  The  miraculous  element 
consists  in  the  storm's  coming  at  an  unheard  of  season,  Prov.  26  :  i. 
The  wheat  harvest  occurs  in  early  summer,  the  dry  season  when 
rain  rarely  falls  in  Palestine.  In  asking.  It  is  interesting  to  note 
that  Saul  means  asked.  There  seems  to  be  a  tendency  to  play  upon 
the  name  of  the  king. 

18.  Feared.  The  effect  upon  the  people  was  due  to  the  unusual 
phenomenon  of  rain  in  the  dry  season,  for  which  both  Jahveh  and 
Samuel  get  credit.  The  storm  was  a  sign  of  the  displeasure  of  Jahveh 
and  of  his  prophet. 

19.  Die  not,  better  and  do  not  let  us  die.  The  idea  of  death  may 
have  been  suggested  by  the  thunderstorm,  of  which  many  people 
are  afraid;  but  any  unwonted  manifestation  of  the  power  of  God 
awakened  the  fear  of  death,  Judg.  13  :  22.  The  last  clause  should 
be  rendered  inasmuch  as  to  all  our  sins  we  have  added  a  wrong  in  asking 
for  us  a  king.  The  miracle  convinces  the  people  that  Samuel  was 
just  in  condemning  their  demand,  and  they  can  now  only  appeal  to 
God's  mercy. 

20.  Turn  not  aside.    Insistent  as  Samuel  is  in  proclaiming  the  sin 

99 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


Samuel  said  unto  the  people,  Fear  not:  ye  have  mdeed 
done  all  this  evil:  yet  turn  not  aside  from  following 
the  Lord,  but  serve  the  Lord  with  all  your  heart; 

21.  and  turn  ye  not  aside:  for  then  should  ye  go  after  vain 
things  which  cannot  profit  nor  deliver,  for  they  are 

22.  vain.  For  the  Lord  will  not  forsake  his  people  for  his 
great  name's  sake:  because  it  hath  pleased  the  Lord 

23.  to  make  you  a  people  unto  himself.  Moreover  as  for 
me,  God  forbid  that  I  should  sin  against  the  Lord 
in  ceasing  to  pray  for  you:  but  I  will  instruct  you  in 

24.  the  good  and  the  right  way.  Only  fear  the  Lord, 
and  serve  him  in  truth  with  all  your  heart:  for  con- 

of  the  people,  he  does  not  make  the  wrong  a  ground  for  alienation 
from  God.  On  the  contrary  he  urges  fervently  that  the  people  shall 
now  serve  God  wholeheartedly. 

21.  By  the  interjection  of  a  single  superfluous  word  the  text  is 
corrupted  thus  leading  to  the  interpolation  of  several  others  in  our 
version.  We  should  render:  hut  do  not  turn  aside  after  vain  things 
which  camwt  profit,  etc.  Then  we  have  a  good  sequel  to  v.  20:  if 
the  people  turn  away  from  Jahveh  they  will  turn  to  those  idols 
which  can  give  man  no  hope.  The  word  rendered  vaiii  things  means 
a  barren  waste  in  Gen.  i  :  2,  indicating  the  condition  of  the  earth 
before  it  had  form  and  life.  Kere  it  means  the  false  gods  who  are 
barren  wastes  and  have  no  life  in  themselves. 

22.  Name's  sake.  If  Jahveh  would  cast  off  his  people  on  account 
of  their  sins,  he  still  would  be  restrained  in  order  to  preserve  his  own 
reputation.  This  conception  belongs  to  a  late  period  in  Hebrew 
thought,  Joel  2:17,  Ps.  42  :  3,  10. 

23.  Ceasing  to  pray.  Samuel  now  answers  the  people's  request 
that  he  should  pray  that  they  might  not  die  on  account  of  their 
sins,  V.  19.  The  fact  that  God  answered  his  prayer  by  sending  the 
storm  reveals  the  power  of  his  prayers.  Samuel's  words  show 
that  he  feels  the  responsibility  of  the  prophet  even  though  deposed 
as  a  civil  ruler.  In  spite  of  his  age  he  will  continue  to  teach  the  people 
the  right  way  of  living. 

24.  This  verse  presumably  gives  at  least  in  substance  "the  good 
and  right  way";  it  is  like  most  great  things  capable  of  very  simple 
statement.  Fearing  and  serving  comprise  the  religious  and  the  ethi- 
cal.    Samuel  insists  in  his  teaching  upon  the  reward  which  God 


THE   FIRST   BOOK   OF   SAMUEL  13:2 


25.  sider  how  great  things  he  hath  done  for  you.  But  if 
ye  shall  still  do  wickedly,  ye  shall  be  consumed,  both 
ve  and  your  king. 

III.  The  Reign  of  Saul,  Chs.  13-31 

I .  The  First  Stage:  War  with  the  Philistines  and  A  melekiteSj 
Chs.  13-1S 

13.  ^  Saul  was  [thirty]  years  old  when  he  began  to  reign; 
2.  and  he  reigned  two  years  over  Israel.    And  Saul  chose 
him  three  thousand  men  of  Israel;  whereof  two  thou- 
sand were  with  Saul  in  Michmash  and  in  the  mount 
of  Beth-el,  and  a  thousand  were  with  Jonathan  in 

1  V.  1  Inddnrr  in  G. 

gives  to  those  who  serve  him  faithfully.  The  great  things  should 
refer  to  the  favors  which  have  come  to  Israel.  But  a  strict  construc- 
tion of  the  words  would  make  the  clause  refer  to  the  thunderstorm, 
whence  Budde  infers  that  it  is  a  gloss.    It  certainly  is  not  needed. 

25.  Consumed.  The  word  sometimes  means  killed  in  battle  and 
that  may  be  the  sense  here,  the  reference  being  to  the  disaster  which 
befell  Saul  and  his  army  on  Mt.  Gilboa,  ch.  31. 

To  this  point  Nowack  transposes  10  :  25-27,  describing  the  sending 
of  the  people  to  their  homes.  It  is  undoubtedly  much  more  suitable 
here  than  where  it  stands. 

(i)  Saul's  war  with  the  Philistines 

Chs.  13,  14  are  the  sequel  to  ch.  11  and  belong  to  the  source  T. 
They  describe  the  first  campaign  in  which  the  new  king  battles 
with  Israel's  foes. 

Jonathan  starts  a  war  with  the  Philistines,  vs.  i-ya. 

1.  The  text  reads,  Saul  was  .  .  .  years  old  when  he  began  to 
reign.  The  whole  verse  is  an  editorial  attempt  to  introduce  Saul's 
reign  after  the  custom  of  the  compiler  of  Kings,  giving  the  king's  age 
at  his  accession  and  the  length  of  his  reign.  But  we  have  no  figure 
in  the  first  place,  and  in  the  second  two  is  altogether  too  small.  Thirty 
which  comes  from  minor  Greek  texts,  is  too  young,  as  Jonathan  is  a 
grown  man. 

2.  The  narrative  is  resumed  from  ch.  11.    After  the  defeat  of  the 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Gibeah  of  Benjamin:  and  the  rest  of  the  people  he 

3.  sent  every  man  to  his  tent.  And  Jonathan  smote  the 
garrison  of  the  PhiHstines  that  was  in  Geba,  and  the 
PhiHstines  heard  of  it.  And  Saul  blew  the  trumpet 
throughout  all  the  land/  sa5dng,  Let  the  Hebrews  hear. 

4.  And  all  Israel  heard  say  that  Saul  had  smitten  the 
garrison  of  the  Philistines,  and  that  Israel  also  was  had 
in  abomination  with  the  Philistines.  And  the  people 
were  gathered  together  after  Saul  to  Gilgal. 

1  G.  the  slaves  have  revolted. 

Ammonites  Saul  was  publicly  proclaimed  as  king.  Now  he  must  turn 
his  attention  to  the  enemy  which  for  a  long  period  had  tyraimized 
over  the  central  tribes  on  the  west  of  the  Jordan.  To  meet  this 
issue  he  picks  out  three  thousand  men  to  serve  as  an  army,  and  divides 
his  force  into  two  sections.  His  own  headquarters  are  established 
at  Michmash  and  Bethel,  and  Jonathan  was  stationed  on  the  south 
of  the  pass  in  Gibeah  or  Geba.  The  forces  were  distributed  so  as 
to  guard  the  pass.  To  his  tent  shows  the  preservation  of  terms  from 
the  nomadic  state,  when  the  tent  was  the  home. 

3.  Garrison  is  not  right;  deputy  is  doubtless  the  correct  term.  The 
deputy  was  a  Phihstine  officer  assigned  to  govern  the  subjugated 
people,  so  in  v.  4;  cf.  note  on  10  :  5.  Why  Jonathan  slew  the  Philis- 
tine officer  is  uncertain,  but  as  Saul's  raising  an  army  discloses  an 
intention  to  revolt  against  the  oppressor,  Jonathan  may  have  acted 
to  delay  news  of  the  uprising  from  reaching  the  Philistines.  The  rest 
of  the  verse  is  difficult,  for  Saul  would  not  use  the  term  Hebrews,  and 
as  Saul  had  just  sent  the  people  home,  retaining  an  armed  force,  he 
would  hardly  call  them  out  now.  Therefore  Smith  omits  this  clause, 
and  adopting  G.,  gets  good  sense:  and  the  Philistines  heard  as  fol- 
lows: the  slaves  [or  Hebrews]  have  revolted.  Then  Saul  sounded 
the  call  to  arms. 

4.  Saul  had  smitten.  The  king  gets  credit  or  blame  for  the  deeds 
of  subordinates,  and  so  in  the  report  spread  over  the  land  Jonathan's 
act  is  ascribed  to  Saul.  Had  in  abomination  better  in  bad  odor,  on 
account  of  the  revolt.  The  Israelites  knew  that  the  Philistines  would 
send  a  punitive  force,  and  were  doubtless  in  terror.  Gilgal  is  impos- 
sible here,  for  Saul  and  Jonathan  were  at  the  pass  of  Michmash, 
and  the  terrified  Israelites  did  not  join  his  force  at  this  time.  Gilgal 
is  named  to  prepare  the  way  for  the  interpolated  story  in  v.  7b  ff. 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  13:5 


5.  And  the  Philistines  assembled  themselves  together  to 
fight  with  Israel/  thirty  ^  thousand  chariots,  and  six 
thousand  horsemen,  and  people  as  the  sand  which  is 
on  the  sea  shore  in  multitude:  and  they  came  up,  and 

6.  pitched  in  Michmash,  eastward  of  Beth-aven.^  When 
the  men  of  Israel  saw  that  they  were  in  a  strait,  (for 
the  people  were  distressed,)  then  the  people  did  hide 
themselves  in  caves,  and  in  thickets,  and  in  rocks, 

7.  and  in  holds,  and  in  pits.  Now  some  of  the  Hebrews 
had  gone  over  Jordan  to  the  land  of  Gad  and  Gilead; 
but  as  for  Saul,  he  was  yet  in  Gilgal,  and  all  the  people 
followed  him  trembling. 

1  G.  adds:  and  there  went  up  against  Israel.        2  g.  three.        '  G.  Beth-horon. 

5.  The  numbers  are  doubtless  greatly  exaggerated,  possibly  through 
copyists'  errors.  Doubtless  the  hostile  forces  looked  big  to  Israel. 
The  Phihstmes  gathered  hard  by  the  heights  held  by  Saul  and 
Jonathan. 

6,  7a.  Men  of  Israel  seems  to  indicate  a  dififerent  class  from  the 
people.  The  former  may  be  the  troops.  Distressed  or  rather  op- 
pressed, indicates  the  condition  resulting  from  the  Philistine  tyranny, 
G.  has  a  different  reading,  though  its  meaning  is  obscure,  and  our 
text  may  be  corrupt.  The  people  hid  in  order  to  keep  out  of  the 
way  of  the  invaders  who  would  indulge  in  promiscuous  slaughter. 
Holds.  The  original  apparently  means  tombs  cut  in  the  rocks  or 
as  Driver  suggests  "  an  underground  vault."  To  find  even  a  safer 
refuge  some  fled  over  the  Jordan.  This  passage,  like  vs.  19-22,  shows 
how  the  Hebrews  had  been  treated  by  their  powerful  foe. 

Saul  denounced  by  Samuel,  vs.  7b-i5a.  It  is  universally  recog- 
nized that  we  have  in  this  section  an  interpolated  passage  from  an- 
other source.  Samuel  reappears  as  the  theocratic  ruler,  and  is 
irreconciliably  hostile  to  the  kingdom.  Gilgal  again  becomes  the 
scene  of  action,  whereas  before  and  after  Saul  is  at  Michmash.  The 
story  interrupts  the  description  of  the  Philistine  campaign.  It  be- 
longs to  the  type  we  find  in  ch.  8,  and  is  parallel  to  eh.  15.  It  may 
have  been  inserted  here  to  show  that  the  oldest  narrative  also  had 
an  account  of  Saul's  deposition. 

7b  f.  Followed  him  trembling  may  mean  "sought  him  for  pro- 
tection in  their  fear  "  (Budde).    The  sense  is  certainly  that  the  people 

103 


■3:8  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


8.  And  he  tarried  seven  days,  according  to  the  set  time 
that  Samuel  had  appointed;  but  Samuel  came  not  to 
Gilgal;   and    the   people   were   scattered   from   him. 

9.  And  Saul  said,  Bring  hither  the  burnt  offering  to  me, 
and  the  peace  offerings.     And  he  offered  the  burnt 

10.  offering.  And  it  came  to  pass  that,  as  soon  as  he  had 
made  an  end  of  offering  the  burnt  offering,  behold, 
Samuel  came;  and  Saul  went  out  to  meet  him,  that 

11.  he  might  salute  him.  And  Samuel  said.  What  hast 
thou  done?  And  Saul  said.  Because  I  saw  that  the 
people  were  scattered  from  me,  and  that  thou  earnest 
not  within  the  days  appointed,  and  that  the  Philistines 

who  were  with  Saul  were  in  a  state  of  great  terror.  Seven  days  con- 
nects this  event  with  10  :  8,  a  passage  perhaps  interpolated  to  pro- 
vide a  suitable  setting  for  this  story.  Were  scattered.  On  account 
of  their  fear  of  the  Philistines  Saul's  forces  rapidly  melted  away. 
It  was  the  danger  of  being  left  alone  against  the  enemy  that  forced 
Saul  to  act. 

9.  The  sacrifice  was  to  be  offered  to  secure  the  favor  of  Jahveh, 
so  that  he  would  aid  in  battle,  cf.  7  : 9  f .  Such  religious  ceremonies 
led  to  the  common  phrase  consecrate  war,  Jer.  6  :  4,  Mic.  3:5.  The 
idea  was  the  consecration  of  the  warriors  (Smith,  Relig.  Sent.  383). 
Among  the  Arabs  blood  from  the  sacrificial  animals  was  sprinkled 
on  the  tents  of  the  warriors.  Saul  probably  felt  that  after  their 
consecration  the  troops  would  cease  deserting. 

10.  The  Hebrew  loves  these  dramatic  scenes,  Samuel  appearing 
at  the  moment  Saul  had  completed  his  offense,  cf.  Job  i  :  16  ff.  To 
meet  him  ignores  the  fact  that  Samuel  had  arrived  actually  upon 
the  scene;  it  is  therefore  better  to  read  went  towards  him  to  greet  him 
with  the  customary  blessing. 

II  f.  Samuel  straightway  accuses  Saul  by  his  question,  and  Saul 
realizes  that  he  had  committed  an  offense,  and  offers  a  lengthy 
explanation.  In  10  : 8  Samuel  said  he  would  come  to  Gilgal  to  make 
the  offerings  and  directed  Saul  to  wait  for  him  seven  days.  The 
king  had  waited  the  alloted  time,  but  the  prophet  did  not  keep  the 
tryst,  and  in  this  respect  Samuel  was  at  fault.  But  his  failure  is 
not  regarded  as  an  alleviation  of  the  king's  wrong,  which  consisted 
in  his  offering  the  sacrifice.  Saul  pleads  that  his  army  was  rapidly 
deserting,  that  he  might  be  attacked  without  properly  consecrating 

104 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  13:15 


12.  assembled  themselves  together  at  Michmash;  there- 
fore said  I,  Now  will  the  Philistines  come  down  upon 
me  to  Gilgal,  and  I  have  not  intreated  the  favour  of 
the  Lord:  I  forced  myself  therefore,  and  offered  the 

13.  burnt  offering.  And  Samuel  said  to  Saul,  Thou  hast 
done  fooHshly:  thou  hast  not  kept  the  commandment 
of  the  Lord  thy  God,  which  he  commanded  thee: 
for  now  would  the  Lord  have  established  thy  kingdom 

14.  upon  Israel  for  ever.  But  now  thy  kingdom  shall  not 
continue:  the  Lord  hath  sought  him  a  man  after  his 
own  heart,  and  the  Lord  hath  appointed  him  to  be 
prince  over  his  people,  because  thou  hast  not  kept 
that  which  the  Lord  commanded  thee. 

15.  And  Samuel  arose,  and  gat  him  up  from  Gilgal  unto 
Gibeah  of  Benjamin.    And  Saul  numbered  the  people 

his  forces,  and  that  he  had  felt  constrained  to  act.  Samuel  regards 
Saul's  offense  as  so  grave  in  the  sight  of  God  that  it  will  lead  to  his 
overthrow.  Yet  it  is  difficult  to  see  what  Saul's  wrong  was.  As  our 
text  stands  the  only  thing  we  find  is  that  Samuel  had  said  that  he 
would  offer  the  sacrifices,  an  act  which  Saul  took  it  upon  himself 
to  do.  There  is  no  discoverable  wrong  to  justify  Samuel's  severe 
condemnation. 

13.  Commandment  of  the  Lord.  The  only  command  Saul  had 
violated  was  the  offering  of  a  sacrifice  instead  of  waiting  indefinitely 
for  Samuel,  and  in  this  period  sacrifices  were  offered  by  laymen 
without  question.  Thy  kingdom  for  ever.  The  meaning  is  that 
Saul's  dynasty  would  have  been  permanent,  if  he  had  been  obedi- 
ent. 

14.  A  man  after  his  own  heart  points  naturally  to  David,  Acts  13  : 
20.  If  we  could  trust  the  Hebrew  tenses,  we  might  say  that  they 
show  the  passage  to  betray  its  origin  after  the  time  of  David's  rise 
to  the  throne. 

15a.  Samuel  would  go  to  Ramah,  not  to  Saul's  home  at  Gibeah. 
A  section  has  been  lost  from  the  text,  but  is  preserved  in  G.  thus: 
And  Samuel  arose  and  went  up  from  Gilgal  on  his  way;  and  the  rest  of 
the  people  went  tip  after  Saul  to  meet  the  men  of  war,  and  they  went 
from  Gilgal  to  Gibeah  of  Benjamin. 

105 


I3:i6  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


that  were  present  with  him,  about  six  hundred  men. 

1 6.  And  Saul,  and  Jonathan  his  son,  and  the  people  that 
were  present  with  them,  abode  in  Geba  of  Benjamin:  ^ 

17.  but  the  PhiUstines  encamped  in  Michmash.  And  the 
spoilers  came  out  of  the  camp  of  the  PhiHstines  in  three 
companies:  one  company  turned  unto  the  way  that 

18.  leadeth  to  Ophrah,  unto  the  land  of  Shual:  and  an- 
other company  turned  the  way  to  Beth-horon:  and 
another  company  turned  the  way  of  the  border  that 
looketh  down  upon  the  valley  of  Zeboim  toward  the 
wilderness. 

1  G.  adds  and  wept. 

Dispositions  of  the  Hebrew  and  of  the  Philistine  army,  vs.  I5b-i8. 
15b.  Numbered  or  better  mustered.  Saul  gathered  together  such 
forces  as  he  could  find  and  noted  that  there  were  about  six  hundred. 
It  is  thought  by  Smith  that  this  number  is  taken  from  14  :  2,  and 
the  sentence  an  editorial  connecting  link. 

16.  Geba,  elsewhere  Gibeah.  The  whole  Israelite  force  is  now 
concentrated  at  one  place.  Saul  had  at  first  held  Michmash,  but 
had  abandoned  it  upon  the  approach  of  the  Philistines,  so  that  the 
two  armies  were  now  stationed  on  opposite  sides  of  the  pass. 

17.  The  spoilers  represents  a  part  of  the  army  sent  out  to  plunder 
and  to  devastate.  Three  columns  started  out  to  ravage  the  land 
far  and  wide,  to  punish  the  people  for  their  rebellion,  a  method 
common  in  modem  as  well  as  in  ancient  wars.  Ophrah  is  reckoned 
as  a  Benjamite  town,  Jos.  18  :  23,  and  lay  to  the  northwest.  Shual 
occurs  nowhere  else,  and  is  an  unknown  place. 

18.  Beth-horon  lay  to  the  west  of  Gibeah.  Zeboim  is  named  as  a 
place  in  Benjamin,  Neh.  11  :  34.  It  probably  lay  in  a  southerly 
direction,  so  that  the  three  columns  would  proceed  in  all  directions 
so  as  to  ravage  the  whole  country. 

A  specimen  of  Philistine  oppression,  vs.  19-23.  The  point  is  to 
indicate  that  the  Hebrews  at  the  critical  moment  were  unarmed. 
But  at  the  attack  on  the  Ammonites  at  Jabesh-gilead  Saul's  forces 
were  armed;  in  ch.  14  the  Hebrews  do  not  lack  weapons;  and  there 
would  be  no  point  in  gathering  an  army  of  3,000,  v.  2,  unless  they 
were  armed.  The  story  has  no  place  here  as  it  stands.  We  may 
suppose  either  that  it  refers  to  a  small  area  near  the  Philistine  border, 
or  that  it  refers  to  some  other  period. 

106 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


19.  Now  there  was  no  smith  found  throughout  all  the  land 
of  Israel:  for  the  PhiHstines  said,  Lest  the  Hebrews 

20.  make  them  swords  or  spears:  but  all  the  IsraeUtes 
went  down  to  the  Philistines,  to  sharpen  every  man 
his  share,^  and  his  coulter,  and  his  axe,  and  his  mat- 

21.  tock;  ^  yet  they  had  a  file  for  the  mattocks,  and  for 
the  coulters,  and  for  the  forks,  and  for  the  axes;  and 

22.  to  set  the  goads.  So  it  came  to  pass  in  the  day  of 
battle,  that  there  was  neither  sword  nor  spear  found 
in  the  hand  of  any  of  the  people  that  were  with  Saul 
and  Jonathan:  but  with  Saul  and  with  Jonathan  his 

23.  son  was  there  found.  And  the  garrison  of  the  PhiHs- 
tines went  out  unto  the  pass  of  Michmash. 

1  G.  sickle.  2  Perhaps  goad. 

ig.  In  all  the  land.  It  would  be  extremely  difficult  to  abolish 
smiths  from  the  whole  land.  In  rural  communities  almost  any  person 
can  set  up  enough  of  a  smithy  to  do  such  simple  work  as  the  sharpen- 
ing of  tools. 

21.  As  this  verse  stands  in  English  it  means  that  the  Hebrews  had 
a  tool  for  the  temporary  sharpening  of  their  implements  so  that  it 
would  be  necessary  to  make  the  long  journey  to  Philistia  but  rarely. 
In  the  original,  however,  the  verse  is  hopelessly  unintelligible.  The 
rendering  file  comes  from  Jewish  sources  and  is  clearly  unjustifiable. 
The  two  words  can  scarcely  be  translated  at  all,  bluntness  of  edges 
being  the  usual  attempt.  The  words  rendered  forks  is  equally  hope- 
less. G.  renders  three  shekels  per  tooth  suggesting  the  charges  of  the 
Philistine  smiths.  But  nobody  knows  what  the  words  mean.  To 
set  the  goads  is  also  perplexing,  for  the  rendering  is  suspicious,  since 
setting  would  not  be  done  by  a  file,  and  the  word  cannot  mean  sharpen. 
G.  has,  and  the  harvest  was  ready  to  reap,  which  suggests  either  plunder- 
ing or  the  difficulty  of  the  peasants  with  dull  tools,  but  has  nothing 
to  do  with  the  context. 

22.  This  statement  is  clear,  though  improbable.  To  disarm  a 
people  completely  is  nearly  impossible  in  the  days  of  firearms,  and 
under  conditions  such  that  any  one  could  construct  an  effective  spear 
or  a  primitive  sword,  quite  so. 

23.  This  verse  joins  v.  18  to  ch.  14,  though  it  is  so  needless  here 
that  it  has  been  regarded  as  a  gloss.    The  point  may  be  that  while 

107 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


14.  Now  it  fell  upon  a  day,  that  Jonathan  the  son  of  Saul 
said  unto  the  young  man  that  bare  his  armour,  Come 
and  let  us  go  over  to  the  Phihstines'  garrison,  that  is 

2.  on  yonder  side.  But  he  told  not  his  father.  And  Saul 
abode  in  the  uttermost  part. of  Gibeah  under  the  pome- 
granate tree  which  is  in  Migron:  and  the  people  that 

3.  were  with  him  were  about  six  hundred  men;  and 
Ahijah,  the  son  of  Ahitub,  Ichabod's  brother,  the  son 
of  Phinehas,  the  son  of  EH^  the  priest  of  the  Lord  in 
Shiloh,  wearing  an  ephod.    And  the  people  knew  not 

4.  that  Jonathan  was  gone.     And  between  the  passes, 

three  columns  went  out  to  ravage  the  land,  the  main  force  of  the  Phil- 
istines remained  in  contact  with  Saul's  small  army.  G.,  however,  has 
a  very  different  text:  and  he  [Jonathan]  went  out  from  the  garrison  of  the 
Philistines  which  was  beyond  Michmash,  bid  he  did  not  tell  his  father 
anything  [of  his  plans].  This  prepares  the  way  for  ch.  14.  Curiously 
this  reading  is  generally  overlooked. 

Jonathan  plans  an  attack  on  the  Phihstine  garrison,  14  :  i-io. 

1.  That  bare  his  armour.  It  was  not  really  the  task  of  this 
officer  to  carry  the  weapons  of  his  chief.  The  armorbearer  was  a 
trusty  aid,  and  was  selected  largely  because  of  his  military  prowess. 
Philistines'  garrison  refers  to  the  main  force  of  the  enemy,  as  distinct 
from  the  three  raiding  bands  described  above.  Told  not.  The  enter- 
prize  Jonathan  proposes  was  very  reckless,  and  Saul  would  certainly 
have  forbidden  it.    Jonathan  was  a  bolder  spirit  than  his  father. 

2.  Uttermost  part,  that  is,  on  the  outskirts  of  the  town,  probably 
as  far  as  possible  from  the  Philistines.  In  Migron.  The  only  known 
Migron  lies  north  of  Michmash,  and  so  is  unsuitable.  Wellhausen 
proposed  in  the  threshing  floor ,  and  so  an  open  high  place,  well  adapted 
for  Saul's  camp.  Six  hundred  indicates  that  the  original  three  thou- 
sand of  13  :  2  had  dwindled  as  the  danger  increased. 

3.  The  significance  of  the  presence  of  the  priest  appears  later,  v.  18. 
Abijah  is  not  named  outside  of  this  chapter,  but  as  Ahimelech  (22  :  9, 
20,  21  :  2)  was  also  the  son  of  Ahitub,  and  as  the  names  have  the  same 
meaning,  the  two  may  be  the  same  person.  Ephod  is  certainly  an  in- 
strument used  by  the  priest  in  divination;  as  the  priest  apparently 
inserted  his  hand  into  the  ephod,  v.  19,  it  may  have  been  some  kind  of 
a  bag;  cf.  note  on  2  :  18. 

4  f .  The  exact  configuration  of  the  heights  which  Jonathan  and  his 
108 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  14:8 


by  which  Jonathan  sought  to  go  over  unto  the  Phil- 
istines' garrison,  there  was  a  rocky  crag  on  the  one 
side,  and  a  rocky  crag  on  the  other  side:  and  the  name 
of  the  one  was  Bozez,  and  the  name  of  the  other  Seneh. 

5.  The  one  crag  rose  up  ^  on  the  north  in  front  of  Mich- 
mash,  and  the  other  on  the  south  in  front  of  Geba. 

6.  And  Jonathan  said  to  the  young  man  that  bare  his 
armour,  Come  and  let  us  go  over  unto  the  garrison  of 
these  uncircumcised:  it  may  be  that  the  Lord  will 
work  for  us:  for  there  is  no  restraint  to  the  Lord  to 

7.  save  by  many  or  by  few.  And  his  armourbearer  said 
unto  him.  Do  all  that  is  in  thine  heart:  turn  thee, 

8.  behold  I  am  with  thee  according  to  thy  heart.  Then 
said  Jonathan,  Behold,  we  will  pass  over  unto  the  men, 

^  G.  omits. 

helper  must  ascend  is  described,  presumably  to  show  the  difficulty 
of  his  task.  The  passes  or  ravines  are  offshoots  from  the  main  valley. 
At  the  point  of  intersection  were  the  two  rocky  crags,  or  tooths^  of 
rock.  The  names  of  these  crags  occur  nowhere  else.  Rose  up  is  a 
strained  rendering  of  an  unnecessary  word.  The  crags  were  so 
situated  that  Jonathan  would  have  to  descend  one  to  get  into  the 
valley  and  ascend  the  other  to  reach  the  Philistines. 

6.  These  uncircumcised  is  here  applied  to  the  Philistines  as  a  re- 
proach, a  usage  quite  common  in  this  period,  Judg.  14:  3,  15:  18,  i 
Sam.  17:26,36.  The  term  is  rarely  used  of  other  nations.  The  Lord 
will  work  for  us,  otherwise  failure  would  be  certain  from  Jonathan's 
point  of  view.  The  task  he  proposed  was  foolhardy,  as  men  would 
judge  it,  but  with  Jahveh's  help  anything  was  possible. 

7,  Jonathan  had  not  commanded  his  assistant,  the  danger  was  too 
great  for  that,  but  laid  his  plan  before  him  and  invited  his  co- 
operation. Now  the  armourbearer  agrees  to  share  in  the  exploit, 
without  whose  aid  even  the  bold  prince  would  hardly  dare  to  venture. 
By  the  help  of  G.  we  get  a  much  clearer  expression  from  the  associ- 
ate :  do  all  to  which  thy  heart  inclines;  behold  I  am  with  thee;  as  thy  heart 
so  is  my  heart. 

8-10.  Jonathan  realized  that  nothing  could  come  of  this  mad 
enterprize  unless  Jahveh  were  auspicious.    He  could  not  consult  the 

109 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


9.  and  we  will  discover  ourselves  unto  them.  If  they  say 
thus  unto  us,  Tarry  until  we  come  to  you;  then  we  will 
stand  still  in  our  place,  and  will  not  go  up  unto  them. 

10.  But  if  they  say  thus,^  Come  up  unto  us;  then  we  will 
go  up:  for  the  Lord  hath  deUvered  them  into  our 

11.  hand:  and  this  shall  be  the  sign  unto  us.  And  both  of 
them  discovered  themselves  ^  unto  the  garrison  of  the 
PhiHstines:  and  the  PhiHstines  said,  Behold,  the 
Hebrews  come  forth  out  of  the  holes  where  they  had 

12.  hid  themselves.  And  the  men  of  the  garrison  an- 
swered Jonathan  and  his  armourbearer,  and  said, 
Come  up  to  us,  and  we  will  shew  you  a  thing.  And 
Jonathan  said  unto  his  armourbearer.  Come  up  after 
me:  for  the  Lord  hath  delivered  them  into  the  hand  of 

1  G.  adds  unto  us.  2  g.  went  out. 

oracle  as  Saul  started  to  do  a  few  hours  later,  so  he  resorts  to  a  sign 
the  sole  object  of  which  is  to  determine  whether  Jahveh  approves  of 
his  act.  (On  the  sign  cf.  further  on  10  :  2-7.)  The  assumption  is  that 
only  two  remarks  are  possible  for  the  Philistines,  whereas  they  might 
have  made  many  other  remarks  than  the  two  named.  But  in  sub- 
stance the  enemy  could  only  invite  the  lonely  pair  to  come  up  the  hill, 
or  to  remain  below.  The  words  tarry,  etc.  (lit.  be  silent,  i.  e.,  stand 
still)  would  mean  a  challenge  to  the  pair  to  remain  until  the  Philis- 
tines could  get  at  them.  If  they  said  come  up,  it  would  indicate  either 
friendliness  or  disdain  of  their  feebleness.  The  idea  in  Jonathan's 
mind  is  that  if  Jahveh  is  favorably  inclined  towards  the  bold  enter- 
prize  he  will  put  the  appropriate  words  into  the  mouth  of  the  Philis- 
tines. 
Jonathan's  assault  on  the  garrison,  vs.  11-15. 

1 1 .  The  holes.  The  remark  of  the  Philistines  shows  their  contempt 
for  the  Hebrews,  and  indicates  abundant  justification  for  their  feel- 
ings.  The  Hebrews  had  evidently  kept  out  of  reach  of  the  enemy. 

12.  Answered.  Jonathan  and  his  companion  had  not  spoken,  but 
the  Hebrew  uses  answer  freely,  and  the  real  meaning  here  is,  in  view  of 
the  act  of  Jonathan,  the  men  said.  Shew  you  a  thing,  or  Hterally,  make 
you  know  a  word,  i.  e,,  tell  you  something.  The  words  are  not  to  be 
taken  as  a  serious  challenge,  for  two  men  would  not  be  regarded  as  a 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


13.  Israel.  And  Jonathan  climbed  up  upon  his  hands  and 
upon  his  feet,  and  his  armourbearer  after  him:  and 
they  fell  before  Jonathan;  and  his  armourbearer  slew 

14.  them  after  him.  And  that  first  slaughter,  which 
Jonathan  and  his  armourbearer  made,  was  about 
twenty  men,  within  as  it  were  half  a  furrow's  length 

menace  to  a  strong  garrison,  but  as  a  taunt.  The  remark  conveys 
deep  significance  to  Jonathan,  however,  for  it  is  the  sign  that  Jahveh 
bids  him  attack.  The  hand  oif  Israel  not  into  our  hands,  for  Jonathan 
evidently  foresees  the  starting  of  a  battle  in  which  the  army  of  Israel 
wUl  participate.  1 

13.  Upon  his  hands  and  his  feet,  because  the  cliff  was  steep.  Smith 
supposes  that  during  this  climb  Jonathan  was  hidden,  so  that  he  sur- 
prised the  garrison.  It  is  difficult  to  see  how  there  could  be  any  sur- 
prise to  the  Philistines,  as  they  had  seen  Jonathan  and  asked  him  to 
come  to  them.  If  Jonathan  had  sought  to  reach  them  unawares,  he 
would  not  have  disclosed  himself.  It  may  be  that  the  steep  climb 
indicates  that  he  reached  the  garrison  at  an  unexpected  point  and  so 
began  his  attack  in  an  unexpected  place.  And  they  fell  before  Jona- 
than, is  abrupt.  It  is  better  to  follow  G.  and  they  turned  before  Jona- 
than and  he  struck  them  down.  Either  the  Philistines  were  not  looking 
for  an  attack,  or  he  came  upon  some  part  of  the  camp  unexpectedly. 
When  he  began  his  assault,  the  amazed  enemy  turned  to  flee,  but  the 
fleet  assailant  kept  after  them,  merely  pausing  long  enough  to  strike 
them  to  the  ground,  while  his  companion  followed  and  slew  those 
whom  his  leader  had  felled.  The  Philistines  had  felt  very  secure  and 
probably  had  neither  weapons  nor  armor  at  hand. 

14.  First  slaughter  in  distinction  from  the  havoc  wrought  in  the 
battle  which  followed.  Under  the  circumstances  indicated  in  v.  13, 
the  killing  of  twenty  men  in  an  outpost  is  not  incredible.  The  rest 
of  the  verse  is  quite  hopeless.  The  space  of  ground  within  which  the 
Philistines  were  slain  is  not  important.  The  English  rendering  is 
scarcely  warranted.  The  translation  acre  is  extremely  doubtful; 
length  does  not  occur  at  all;  furrow  is  certainly  a  wrong  rendering, 
to  say  nothing  of  its  vagueness  here,  for  the  ordinary  meaning  would 
be  answer.  G.  reads  with  missiles  and  stones  of  the  field,  indicating 
the  weapons  used,  a  reading  accepted  by  Nowack;  but  such  imple- 
ments would  not  be  employed  for  this  kind  of  an  attack. 

iln  vs.  6-12,  18-20,  and  in  2  Sam.  Jonathan's  name  appears  in  the  full  form 
Jehonathan.     The  sections  may  be  from  a  source  different  from  the  rest  of  the 

narrative. 

Ill 


THE  FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


15.  in  an  acre  of  land.  And  there  was  a  trembling  in  the 
camp,  in  the  field,  and  among  all  the  people;  the 
garrison,  and  the  spoilers,  they  also  trembled:  and 
the  earth  quaked;  so  there  was  an  exceeding  great 

16.  trembling.  And  the  watchmen  of  Saul  in  Gibeah  of 
Benjamin  looked;  and,  behold,  the  multitude  melted 
away,  and  they  went  hither  and  thither. 

17.  Then  said  Saul  unto  the  people  that  were  with  him, 
Number  now,  and  see  who  is  gone  from  us.  And 
when  they  had  numbered,  behold,  Jonathan  and  his 

18.  armourbearer  were  not  there.  And  Saul  said  unto 
Ahijah,  Bring  hither  the  ^  ark  of  God.    For  ^  the  ark  of 

1  G.  Ephod.  2  Q,  pgf  itg  carried  the  epkod  that  day  before  Israel. 

15.  The  trembling  which  fell  upon  the  whole  body  of  Philistines 
was  apparently  caused  by  Jonathan's  attack,  for  which  they  were 
evidently  not  looking.  The  verse  is  redundant  in  defining  the  loca- 
tion of  the  trembling.  The  spoilers  are  distinguished  from  the  garri- 
son as  those  who  had  gone  out  on  raids,  13  :  17  jff.  The  earth  quaked 
has  been  explained  as  due  to  the  panic  among  the  Philistines,  but 
it  would  be  more  reasonable  to  explain  the  stampede  of  the  enemy 
as  due  to  the  earthquake.  If  the  mysterious  words  in  v.  14  meant 
that  Jonathan  climbed  to  a  peak  above  the  Philistines  and  rolled 
rocks  upon  them,  the  trembling  and  the  earthquake  would  both  be 
clear.  Great  trembling,  ht.  for  a  trembling  of  God,  i.  e.,  such  a  trem- 
bling as  only  God  could  send. 

Saul  leads  his  forces  to  battle,  vs.  16-23. 

16.  Looked  for  the  commotion  attracted  their  attention.  On  the 
basis  of  G.  a  slight  correction  is  required  at  the  close  of  the  verse, 
and  we  have:  the  multitude  dispersed  in  every  direction,  i.  e.,  fled  with- 
out order  or  purpose. 

17.  Saul's  directions  indicate  his  behef  that  the  Philistine  panic 
was  due  to  a  battle  with  some  Hebrews  who  had  left  his  camp.  As  he 
had  so  few  men  this  idea  suggests  an  inconsistency  with  the  descrip- 
tion of  V.  17.  Number  implies  rather  too  formal  an  act  for  a  small 
undisciplined  force,  such  as  calling  the  roll.  The  word  may  mean 
no  more  than  seek.  As  Jonathan  was  a  conspicuous  person  his  absence 
would  be  quickly  noted. 

18.  Abijah,  see  v.  3.    Ark  of  God,  for  which  G.  reads  correctly 

112 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  14:21 


God  was  there  at  that  time  with  the  children  of  Israel. 

19.  And  it  came  to  pass,  while  Saul  talked  unto  the  priest, 
that  the  tumult  that  was  in  the  camp  of  the  PhiHstines 
went  on  and  increased:  and  Saul  said  unto  the  priest, 

20.  Withdraw  thine  hand.  And  Saul  and  all  the  people 
that  were  with  him  ^  were  gathered  together,  and  came 
to  the  battle:  and,  behold,  every  man's  sword  was 
against  his  fellow,  and  there  was  a  very  great  discom- 

21.  fiture.    Now  the  ^  Hebrews  that  were  v;ith  the  Phil- 

1  G.  'ivent  up.  -  G.  slaves. 

the  ephod.  Saul  wanted  to  ascertain  the  will  of  God  before  hazarding 
a  battle,  and,  so  far  as  we  know,  the  ark  was  not  used  for  divination. 
The  ephod  was  a  common  agent  in  determining  the  will  of  God, 
23  :  9,  30  :  7.  Moreover,  the  ark  was  at  Kiriath-jearim  at  this  time, 
7:1.  This  correction  requires  the  emending  of  the  next  clause  as 
well.  In  harmony  with  v.  3  G.  means  that  a  priest  was  with  the 
army  with  the  necessary  means  of  divination. 

19.  Talked  unto  the  priest,  not  referring  to  the  order  to  bring  the 
ephod,  V.  18,  but  to  the  questions  to  which  Saul  wanted  an  answer, 
cf.  23  :  10  ff.  The  tumult.  In  v.  16  the  same  word  is  translated 
multitude.  As  the  word  means  roaring^  it  is  used  of  a  crowd  in  a  state 
of  confusion,  and  so  making  much  noise.  The  increase  of  the  uproar 
indicated  the  spread  of  the  panic  among  the  Philistines.  Withdraw 
thine  hand.  Saul  reahzes  that  he  must  be  quick  to  take  advantage 
of  the  confusion  of  the  enemy,  and  so  interrupts  the  priest  and  dis- 
penses with  the  oracle.  It  appears  that  considerable  time  was  re- 
quired in  obtaining  an  oracle  by  the  ephod. 

20.  Were  gathered  together,  or  called  together.  The  force  with 
Saul  was  hastily  assembled  in  military  array  in  order  to  proceed  to 
the  scene  of  action.  Upon  reaching  the  battle  field,  the  cause  of  the 
commotion  mentioned  in  v.  19  is  discovered,  for  the  PhiHstines  were 
found  to  be  fighting  among  themselves.  It  is  impossible  to  know  the 
cause  of  this  quarrel  among  the  enemy,  but  it  may  have  been  over 
the  responsibility  for  the  blow  inflicted  by  Jonathan. 

2 if.  These  verses  are  parenthetical,  describing  how  Saul's  troops 
were  reinforced  by  two  classes  who  joined  him  at  a  timely  moment. 
The  first  class  consisted  of  Hebrews  who  had  been  captured  and  en- 
slaved and  were  taken  on  the  campaign  for  menial  work.  Hence  the 
interpolation  in  the  English  version  from  the  country  is  misleading; 
and  it  is  better  to  read  with  G.  revolted  in  place  of  round  about,  for 

113 


14:22  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


istines  as  beforetime,  which  went  up  with  them  into 
the  camp  from  the  country  round  about;  even  they  also 
turned  to  be  with  the  IsraeUtes  that  were  with  Saul 

22.  and  Jonathan.  Likewise  all  the  men  of  Israel  which 
had  hid  themselves  in  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim, 
when  they  heard  that  the  Philistines  fled,  even  they 

23.  also  followed  hard  after  them  in  the  battle.  So  the 
Lord  saved  Israel  that  day:  and  the  battle  passed 

24.  over  by  Beth-aven.  And  the  men  of  Israel  were  dis- 
tressed that  day:  but  Saul  adjured  the  people,  saying, 
Cursed  be  the  man  that  eateth  any  food  until  it  be 
evening,  and  I  be  avenged  on  mine  enemies.    So  none 

25.  of  the  people  tasted  food.    And  all  the  people  came 

the  point  is  that  they  took  advantage  of  the  confusion  of  the  Philis- 
tines and  fled  to  the  army  of  Saul.  The  second  class  comprised  the 
Hebrews  who  had  taken  refuge  in  the  hills  {cf.  13  : 6),  and  now  that 
the  enemy  was  in  a  panic  came  from  their  hiding  places  and  attacked 
them. 

27,.  The  writer  looked  upon  the  panic  of  the  Philistines  as  the 
work  of  God,  and  so  says  Jahveh  saved  Israel.  The  foe  was  driven 
by  the  Hebrews  as  far  as  Beth-aven,  or  better  after  a  text  of 
G.,  Beth-horon,  on  the  western  slope  of  the  hills  of  Ephraim,  At 
this  point  G.  has  this  substantial  addition  to  the  text  which  is 
quite  generally  accepted  as  authentic:  and  all  the  people  who  were 
with  Saul  were  about  ten  thousand  men,  and  the  battle  spread  in  the 
mountains  of  Ephraim. 

Jonathan  innocently  violates  Saul's  adjuration,  vs.  24-30. 

24.  Distressed.  The  right  meaning  is  hard  pressed  by  the  enemy 
as  13  :  6,  and  that  sense  is  unsuitable  here.  It  is  better  to  follow  G. 
and  change  the  whole  clause  to  read:  and  Saul  comjnittcd  a  great 
blunder  on  that  day;  for  the  narrative  is  evidently  in  sympathy  with 
Jonathan.  Adjured.  Saul's  idea  was  to  continue  the  favorable  aus- 
pices of  Jahveh  by  a  great  fast.  He  probably  did  not  consider  the 
danger  of  the  hungry  people  relaxing  their  efforts  in  the  fight  the 
moment  they  captured  some  spoil  for  food.  Evening,  for  the  Hebrew 
day  ended  at  sunset,  and  then  the  fast  would  be  over,  and  the  fight- 
ing too. 

25.  The  people,  but  the  text  reads  the  land,  and  in  Hebrew  that 

114 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  14:28 


into  the  forest;  and  there  was  honey  upon  the  ground. 

26.  And  when  the  people  were  come  unto  the  forest, 
behold,  the  honey  dropped:  but  no  man  put  his  hand 

27.  to  his  mouth;  for  the  people  feared  the  oath.  But 
Jonathan  heard  not  when  his  father  charged  the  people 
with  the  oath:  wherefore  he  put  forth  the  end  of  the 
rod  that  was  in  his  hand,  and  dipped  it  in  the  honey- 
comb, and  put  his  hand  to  his  mouth;  and  his  eyes 

28.  were  enhghtened.    Then  answered  one  of  the  people, 

never  means  the  inhabitants.  0.  reads,  all  the  land  fasted,  which 
is  open  to  the  same  objection,  besides  being  redundant.  The  text 
is  corrupt  beyond  the  critic's  power  to  restore.  Honey.  Canaan 
was  called  "a  land  flowing  with  milk  and  honey,"  Deut.  6  : 3,  11  :9. 
The  wild  bees  built  in  every  sort  of  crevice,  even  in  the  carcass  of  a 
lion,  Judg.  14  :  8.  G.  reads,  now  there  were  honeycombs  upon  the 
field,  and  is  consistent  in  v.  26. 

26.  As  the  text  stands  the  first  part  of  the  verse  is  a  repetition; 
and  then  we  have  the  statement  that  the  honey  was  dropping,  not 
already  on  the  ground  as  in  v.  25.  Partly  after  G.  it  is  better  to 
read :  the  people  came  to  the  honeycomb,  whence  the  bees  had  gone  (after 
Smith).  This  sentence  prepares  the  way  for  the  assertion  that  the 
people  did  not  touch  the  abundant  food  lying  right  at  hand.  Put 
his  hand  to  his  mouth,  a  figure  of  speech  for  eat,  v.  27,  Prov.  19  :  24. 
Feared.  Among  the  Hebrews  there  was  great  awe  of  an  oath,  for 
the  people  believed  that  a  curse  would  fall  on  them  if  they  violated 
its  terms. 

27.  Heard  not,  for  Jonathan  and  his  armorbearer  were  absent 
when  Saul  had  enjoined  the  fast,  v.  17,  otherwise  it  is  assumed  that 
he  would  not  have  eaten  the  honey.  Eyes  were  enlightened,  is 
explained  by  Smith  as  the  reviving  of  the  powers  of  vision,  the  weary 
man  not  seeing  clearly;  but  it  is  better  with  Nowack  to  regard  the 
description  as  the  rekindling  of  the  whole  bodily  strength  as  the  result 
of  the  refreshment.  Honey  like  sugar  is  rich  in  food  that  stimulates 
quickly. 

28.  The  object  of  the  speaker  was  not  to  warn  Jonathan  of  his 
danger,  otherwise  he  would  have  spoken  before  Jonathan  got  the 
honey  to  his  mouth,  but  to  explain  the  abstinence  of  the  army. 
Jonathan  would  naturally  fail  to  comprehend  why  others  did  not 
follow  his  example,  and  so  secure  much  needed  refreshment.  The 
people  were  faint  is  regarded  by  many  as  a  gloss  from  v.  31,  or  as 

115 


14:29  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


and  said,  Thy  father  straitly  charged  the  people  with 
an  oath,  saying,  Cursed  be  the  man  that  eateth  food 

29.  this  day.  And  the  people  were  faint.  Then  said 
Jonathan,  My  father  hath  troubled  the  land:  see,  I 
pray  you,   how  mine  eyes  have  been  enlightened, 

30.  because  I  tasted  a  little  of  this  honey.  How  much 
more,  if  haply  the  people  had  eaten  freely  to-day  of  the 
spoil  of  their  enemies  which  they  found?  for  now  hath 
there  been  no  great  slaughter  am.ong  the  Philistines. 

a  corrupt  text,  Smith  proposing  some  ingenious  substitutes.  Some 
phrase  is  necessary  here,  not  as  an  independent  statement,  but  as  the 
conclusion  of  the  speaker's  remarks.  We  might  read,  therefore  the 
people  are  faint,  because  Saul  having  ordered  a  fast,  the  people 
pass  by  the  easily  procured  refreshment  and  are  too  weary  to  be 
effective  fighters.  If  any  change  is  made,  it  would  be  best  to  read 
something  like,  and  so  the  people  fast. 

29.  Troubled.  The  word  is  serious,  and  we  may  bring  out  the 
force  better  by  rendering  the  clause,  my  father  has  brought  misfortune 
upon  the  land,  because  his  putting  food  under  the  ban  has  saved  the 
Phihstines  from  the  full  effect  of  their  panic.  A  little  of  this  honey, 
should  be  this  little  honey.  Jonathan's  sharp  criticism  of  his  father 
is  based  on  the  marked  effect  of  a  bit  of  honey  on  himself.  Had  the 
people  eaten  freely  their  exhaustion  would  be  relieved,  and  they 
would  be  fit  for  the  pursuit. 

30.  The  Spoil.  Jonathan's  words  imply  that  the  pursuers  had 
already  found  much  food  abandoned  or  thrown  away  by  the  enemy 
in  their  hasty  flight.  He  would  have  had  the  people  do  more  than 
merely  take  a  little  honey  as  he  had.  No  great  slaughter.  The  prince 
is  evidently  dissatisfied  with  the  results.  He  had  created  a  panic 
in  the  foe's  ranks,  and  that  afforded  an  opportunity  to  administer 
a  crushing  defeat  which  might  have  delivered  his  people  from  their 
oppressor.  This  failure  rather  than  a  desire  for  self-defense  pro- 
voked the  frank  disapproval  of  his  father's  oath. 

The  famished  people  eat  with  the  blood,  vs.  31-35.  31.  Aijalon, 
is  near  the  border  of  the  Philistine  plain,  and  the  statement  there- 
fore indicates  that  the  enemy  was  driven  out  of  the  Hebrew  territory. 
But  such  a  rout  is  regarded  as  inconsistent  v/ith  Jonathan's  words 
in  V.  30,  and  the  text  is  deemed  corrupt.  Various  emendations  have 
been  proposed,  but  they  are  unnecessary,  for  though  the  enemy 
was  pursued  to  his  own  border,  a  large  number  had  not  been  slain, 

116 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  14:34 


31.  And  they  smote  of  the  PhiHstines  that  day  from 
Michmash  to  Aijalon :  and  the  people  were  very  faint. 

32.  And  the  people  flew  upon  the  spoil,  and  took  sheep, 
and  oxen,  and  calves,  and  slew  them  on  the  ground: 

^^.  and  the  people  did  eat  them  with  the  blood.  Then 
they  told  Saul,  saying,  Behold,  the  people  sin  against 
the  Lord,  in  that  they  eat  with  the  blood.  And  he 
said.  Ye  have  dealt  treacherously:  roll  a  great  stone 

34.  unto  me  ^  this  day.     And  Saul  said.  Disperse  your- 

1  G.  hither,  rightly. 

and  so  the  Philistines'  power  was  not  really  broken,  and  that  is 
what  Jonathan  deplores.  Very  faint.  An  expression  necessary  here, 
for  the  exhaustion  was  due  to  the  long  pursuit  and  to  the  abstinence 
from  food;  therefore  the  words  are  not  a  reduplication  of  v.  28.  The 
extreme  hunger  of  the  people  explains  the  mad  rush  for  food,  and 
the  clause  is  closely  connected  with  v.  32. 

32.  Evening  had  come;  the  period  of  Saul's  ban  had  passed;  and  the 
weary  pursuers  had  evidently  reached  the  main  camp  of  the  enemy, 
where  they  found  cattle  which  the  foe  had  abandoned  on  account 
of  his  hasty  flight.  In  their  hurry  the  famished  Hebrews  disregarded 
the  law  against  eating  with  the  blood,  that  is,  they  did  not  wait 
until  the  blood  was  properly  drained  from  the  slain  animals.  For 
the  law,  see  Gen.  9  -.4,  Lev.  17  :  13-14,  Deut.  12  :  16.  The  blood 
was  regarded  as  the  life,  which  belonged  to  God,  and  the  law  required 
it  to  be  returned  to  the  ground. 

33.  Ye  have  dealt  treacherously  is  inappropriate,  addressed  to 
Saul's  informants.  The  simplest  emendation  is  that  proposed  by 
Smith  to  the  informers.  A  great  stone  would  serve  as  an  altar,  and 
therefore  involves  the  idea  of  sacrifice.  The  use  of  the  stone  would 
not  in  itself  insure  the  complete  shedding  of  the  blood,  but  it  would 
involve  the  offering  of  the  blood  to  Jahveh. 

34.  Disperse  yotirselves.  Saul  addresses  those  who  had  informed 
him  of  the  sin  of  the  people,  and  thus  the  proposed  change  in  v.  :^s  is 
justified.  Me  would  imply  that  Saul  was  to  act  as  priest.  He  did 
not  fault  the  people  because  they  were  dispensing  with  the  services 
of  a  priest,  but  because  they  were  not  offering  the  blood  properly; 
therefore  it  is  better  with  Klostermann  to  read  to  Jahveh.  Here. 
literally,  with  this,  refers  to  the  great  stone  which  served  as  an  altar. 
His  ox.  Sheep  of  the  preceding  clause  is  lacking,  therefore  we  should 
follow  G.  and  read  every  man  what  was  in  his  hand,  i.  e.,  what  he  had. 

117 


14:35  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


selves  among  the  people,  and  say  unto  them,  Bring 
me  hither  every  man  his  ox,  and  every  man  his  sheep, 
and  slay  them  here,  and  eat;  and  sin  not  against  the 
Lord  in  eating  with  the  blood.  And  all  the  people 
brought  every  man  his  ox  with  him  that  night,  and 

35.  slew  them  there.  And  Saul  built  an  altar  ^  unto  the 
Lord:  the  same  was  the  first  altar  that  he  built  unto 
the  Lord. 

36.  And  Saul  said.  Let  us  go  down  after  the  Philistines  by 
night,  and  spoil  them  until  the  morning  light,  and  let 
us  not  leave  a  man  of  them.  And  they  said.  Do  what- 
soever seemeth  good  unto  thee.    Then  said  the  priest, 

37.  Let  us  draw  near  hither  unto  God.    And  Saul  asked 

1  G.  adds  there. 

That  night  is  lacking  in  G.  and  is  changed  by  several  scholars  to  to 
Jahveh.    The    slaying,  however,  did  take  place  at  night. 

35.  An  altar.  Some  writers  regard  the  altar  simply  as  the  great 
stone  referred  to  in  v.  $$;  but  a  strict  construction  requires  us  to 
understand  a  new  step,  and  I  follow  Budde  in  supposing  that  Saul 
laid  up  an  altar  in  commemoration  of  his  victory  and  of  saving  the 
people  from  sin.  First  altar.  There  is  no  record  of  any  other  altar 
erected  by  Saul,  and  therefore  the  words  should  be  referred  to  the 
past,  meaning  that  Saul  had  never  before  set  up  an  altar. 

Jonathan  is  condemned  to  death,  vs.  36-45.  36.  The  famished 
people  have  been  revived  by  a  liberal  meal,  and  Saul  proposes  a  night 
attack  upon  the  enemy.  Note  that  he  does  not  command,  indicating 
a  rather  democratic  organization.  Spoil  them  or  better,  plunder 
among  them,  does  not  prepare  for  the  idea  of  total  extermination 
which  Saul  proposes,  .and  we  may  read  with  Budde  smite  them.  Saul 
was  not  after  booty,  but  the  destruction  of  the  enemy.  The  people 
agree  to  follow  Saul,  but  the  priest,  mindful  of  the  interrupted  oracle, 
V.  19,  desires  first  to  ascertain  whether  Jahveh  favors  the  campaign. 
The  priest  was  Ahijah,  v.  3.  Budde  emends  the  text  to  make  Saul 
ask  for  the  oracle,  but  the  change  is  unnecessary;  under  the  circum- 
stances the  proposal  would  come  well  from  the  priest. 

37.  Answered  him  not.  Saul's  questions  required  only  the  answer 
yes  or  no,  and  it  is  difificult  on  account  of  our  ignorance  of  the  methods 
employed  to  understand  how  there  could  be  no  answer.    By  such  a 

118 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  14: 41 


counsel  of  God,  Shall  I  go  down  after  tlie  Philistines? 
wilt  thou  deliver  them  into  the  hand  of  Israel?    But 

38.  he  answered  him  not  that  day.  And  Saul  said,  Draw 
nigh  hither,  all  ye  chiefs  of  the  people:  and  know  and 

39.  see  wherein  ^  this  sin  hath  been  this  day.  For,  as  the 
Lord  liveth,  which  saveth  Israel,  though  it  be  in 
Jonathan  my  son,  he  shall  surely  die.  But  there  was 
not  a  man  among  all  the  people  that  answered  him. 

40.  Then  said  he  unto  all  Israel,  Be  ye  on  one  side,  and  I 
and  Jonathan  my  son  will  be  on  the  other  side.  And 
the  people  said  unto  Saul,  Do  what  seeineth  good  unto 

41.  thee.    Therefore  Saul  said  unto  the  Lord,  the  God  of 

1  Vulg.  in  whom 

means  as  Gideon  employed,  the  same  result  would  ha\  e  been  reached 
if  there  had  been  dew  both  on  the  wool  and  on  the  ground  (Judg. 
6  :  36  flf.).  In  28  :  6  we  find  another  case  in  which  Saul  gets  no  answer, 
though  he  tries  several  kinds  of  divination.   That  day  i.  e.,  at  that  time. 

38.  Chiefs,  lit.  corners,  in  a  figurative  sense  the  supporting  part 
of  the  people.  This  sin.  Jahveh's  failure  to  reply  to  Saul's  queries 
indicates  wrath,  and  the  divine  anger,  according  to  the  Jewish  the- 
ology, presupposes  sin,  and  therefore  Saul  sets  about  the  discovery 
of  the  guilty  person  in  order  to  secure  again  the  divine  favor. 

39.  As  Jahveh  lives  is  the  most  solemn  form  of  an  oath.  Saveth 
Israel  is  a  general  expression  indicating  that  God  habitually  saves  the 
people.  But  it  is  particularly  happy  at  this  place,  for  Saul's  point 
is  that  Israel  cannot  be  delivered  from  the  peril  save  by  Jahveh. 
Jonathan.  Saul  is  not  subconsciously  lighting  upon  the  culprit. 
He  means  that  there  will  be  no  exception  to  his  decree  of  death  to  the 
offender  even  though  it  take  the  second  most  important  life  of  the 
kingdom.  Not  a  man.  Many  of  the  people  who  had  been  in  the  fight 
knew  of  Jonathan's  offense,  and  doubtless  they  surmised  that  it  was 
the  cause  of  the  divine  silence;  their  refusal  to  make  a  charge  against 
the  heir  apparent  does  them  great  credit. 

40.  The  method  of  divination  to  be  employed  only  admits  of  a 
choice  between  two  parties.  To  make  the  members  of  the  royal  house 
one  party  emphasizes  Saul's  purpose  to  spare  nobody.  Doubtless 
he  expected  promptly  to  clear  the  court  of  blame. 

41  f .  Our  text  is  obviously  defective  here,  especially  as  we  note  that 
119 


THE  FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


Israel,  Shew  the  right.    And  Jonathan  and  Saul  were 

42.  taken  by  lot:  but  the  people  escaped.  And  Saul  said, 
Cast  lots  between  me  and  Jonathan  my  son.     And 

43.  Jonathan  was  taken.  Then  Saul  said  to  Jonathan, 
Tell  me  what  thou  hast  done.  And  Jonathan  told 
him,  and  said,  I  did  certainly  taste  a  Uttle  honey  with 
the  end  of  the  rod  that  was  in  mine  hand;  and,  lo,  I 

44.  must  die.    And  Saul  said,  God  do  so  and  more  also: 

45.  for  thou  shalt  surely  die,  Jonathan.^    And  the  people 

1  G.  better,  this  day. 

shew  the  right  is  an  impossible  rendering,  for  the  v/ords  mean,  give 
thmnmim.  The  Greek  text  has  preserved  the  original  reading,  par- 
ticularly valuable  because  it  is  the  only  information  we  have  to  show 
how  urim  and  thtmmim  were  used.  The  original  text  was:  A'nd  Saul 
said,  0  Jahveh,  God  of  Israel,  why  didst  thou  not  answer  thy  servant  to- 
day? If  the  blame  be  in  me  or  Jonathan  my  son,  give  urim;  atid  if  thou 
say  est,  the  blame  is  in  the  people,  give  thummim.  And  Saul  and  Jon- 
athan were  taken,  and  the  people  were  released.  Urim  and  thummim 
were  two  objects,  thought  to  be  colored  stones,  which  were  perhaps 
put  in  a  bag,  such  as  the  ephod,  and  the  one  first  drawn,  here  being 
urim,  indicated  that  Saul  or  Jonathan  was  the  culprit.  A  second 
casting,  one  of  the  stones  standing  for  Saul,  the  other  for  his  son, 
fixed  the  blame  on  Jonathan.  In  v.  42  the  Greek  text  has  another 
interesting  addition,  i.  e.,  whoever  Jahveh  designates  shall  be  put  to 
death.  And  the  people  said  to  Saul,  it  shall  not  be  according  to  this  word. 
But  Said  prevailed  over  the  people,  and  they  cast  between  him  and  Jona- 
than his  son,  and  Jonathan  was  taken.  This  appears  to  be  authentic. 
The  people  knew  of  Jonathan's  guilt,  and  as  the  casting  of  the  lots 
was  evidently  about  to  reveal  his  fault,  a  protest  was  lodged  against 
Saul's  going  any  further. 

43.  Tell  me.  Saul  was  convinced  by  the  result  of  the  lots  that 
Jonathan  had  committed  an  offense  so  serious  as  to  arouse  God's 
resentment,  but  up  to  this  time  he  had  no  idea  what  the  fault  was. 
Jonathan  speaks  slightingly  of  his  act,  for  it  was  not  wrong  in  itself, 
merely  a  violation  of  an  indiscreet  oath  that  he  knew  nothing  about. 
He  does  not  complain  at  the  heavy  sentence,  but  accepts  his  fate 
cheerfully  as  we  note  from  a  more  accurate  rendering  of  the  last  clause; 
here  I  am:  let  ms  die. 

45.  Saul  had  refused  to  alter  his  decree,  v.  39,  but  the  people  who 
had  assented  before  the  lots  vv^ere  cast,  v.  40,  now  rebel  outright  and 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  14^47 


said  unto  Saul,  Shall  Jonathan  die,  who  hath  wrought 
this  great  salvation  in  Israel?  God  forbid :  as  the  Lord 
liveth,  there  shall  not  one  hair  of  his  head  fall  to  the 
ground;  for  he  hath  wrought  with  God  this  day.    So 

46.  the  people  rescued  Jonathan,  that  he  died  not.  Then 
Saul  went  up  from  following  the  Philistines:  and  the 
Philistines  went  to  their  own  place. 

47.  Now  when  Saul  had  taken  the  kingdom  over  Israel, 
he  fought  against  all  his  enemies  on  every  side,  against 
Moab,  and  against  the  children  of  Ammon,  and 
against  Edom,  and  against  the  kings  ^  of  Zobah, 
and  against   the  Philistines:   and   whithersoever  he 

'  G.  rightly  king. 

refuse  to  permit  the  death  of  the  hero  who  had  won  the  battle.  Saul's 
power  was  not  recognized  as  absolute.  Wrought  with  God  is  vague, 
and  hard  to  interpret;  for  if  Jonathan  worked  with  God,  why  should 
the  sacred  lot  choose  him  as  the  victim  of  God's  anger?  The  G. 
shows  that  the  text  is  suspicious.  Smith  suggests  for  God  will  be 
gracious  this  day.  It  is  simplest  to  change  a  single  letter,  aleph  for 
ayin  and  we  have  surely  God  has  worked  to-day,  i.  e.,  in  giving  the  great 
victory.  Rescued  not  by  force,  but  by  a  substitute  which  some 
scholars  suppose  to  have  been  a  man,  others  an  animal  as  allowed 
even  in  the  early  laws,  Ex.  13  :  13,  34-20. 

46.  Though  Saul  had  made  his  peace  with  God,  he  did  not  attempt 
further  to  follow  the  enemy,  and  their  defeat  was  so  great  that  they  re- 
tired to  their  own  land. 

A  summary  of  Saul's  wars,  family  and  court,  vs.  47-52.  The  pas- 
sage was  apparently  written  as  the  closing  part  of  the  story  of  Saul's 
life,  and  would  naturally  come  later  in  the  book.  As  it  is  entirely 
friendly  to  Saul,  it  may  have  been  placed  here  to  precede  the  account 
of  Saul's  later  misfortunes.  The  passage  seems  to  exaggerate  Saul's 
victories. 

47.  The  first  clause  must  be  rendered:  noiv  Said  had  seised  the  sov- 
ereignty over  Israel,  i.  e.,  by  force.  The  phrase  seems  to  be  based  on 
the  story  of  the  victory  over  Nahash,  c.  1 1 .  After  Edom  the  LXX  has 
Beth-rehoh;  as  Rehoh  and  Zobah  are  Aramaean  countries,  the  writer 
would  make  Saul's  conquests  almost  as  extensive  as  David's.  He 
vexed  them  is  inadmissible.   The  word  means  he  condemned  as  guilty. 


14:48  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


48.  turned  himself,  he  vexed  them.  And  he  did  valiantly, 
and  smote  the  Amalekites,  and  dehvered  Israel  out 
of  the  hands  of  them  that  spoiled  them. 

49.  Now  the  sons  of  Saul  were  Jonathan,  and  Ishvi,  and 
Malchishua:  and  the  names  of  his  two  daughters  were 
these;  the  name  of  the  firstborn  Merab,  and  the  name 

50.  of  the  younger  Michal:  and  the  name  of  Saul's  wife  was 
Ahinoam  the  daughter  of  Ahimaaz:  and  the  name  of 
the  captain  of  his  host  was  Abner  the  son  of  Ner, 

51.  Saul's  uncle.  And  Kish  was  the  father  of  Saul;  and 
Ner  the  father  of  Abner  was  the  son  of  Abiel. 

52.  And  there  was  sore  war  against  the  Philistines  all  the 

As  the  sense  is  unsuitable,  and  the  verb  has  no  object,  it  is  better  to 
correct  with  the  G.:  wherever  he  kmied,  he  was  victorious,  an  emen- 
dation now  generally  accepted. 

48.  Did  valiantly  should  be  closely  associated  with  v.  47.  Other- 
wise we  may  render:  and  he  organized  an  army.  As  the  battle  with 
the  Amalekites  is  described  in  c.  15,  it  is  clear  that  we  have  a  summary 
of  the  whole  reign  of  Saul. 

49.  Ishvi  is  evidently  a  corruption  of  Ishbaal,  later  changed  to  Ish- 
hosheth  on  account  of  the  revolt  against  the  term  Baal.  He  was  Saul's 
successor,  2  Sam.  2  :  8  f.  Abinadab  who  is  named  among  the  sons  of 
Saul  slain  at  Gilboa,  31  :  2,  is  lacking  here.  According  to  i  Chron. 
8  :  33,  Saul  had  four  sons,  Ishbaal  being  the  youngest,  a  fact  which 
would  explain  his  absence  from  the  disastrous  battle  of  Gilboa. 
Both  daughters  were  used  in  Saul's  attempts  to  ensnare  David  in  the 
toils,  according  to  ch.  18. 

50.  Neither  Saul's  wife  nor  his  father-in-law  are  mentioned  else- 
where. David  had  a  wife  named  Ahinoam,  but  it  can  hardly  be  the 
same  person.  Rizpah,  Saul's  concubine,  and  her  children  are  not 
included  in  the  catalogue.  Abner  figures  prominently  in  the  history 
after  Saul's  death,  but  otherwise  appears  but  incidentally. 

51.  This  verse  evidently  intends  to  define  the  family  relationship 
more  closely.  Kish  was  a  son  of  Abiel,  9:1,  therefore  after  Josephus 
we  should  resid:  for  Kish  the  father  of  Said,  and  Ner  the  father  of  Ab- 
ner were  sons  of  Abiel.  As  Abner  means  Ner  is  my  father,  he  was  evi- 
dently named  appropriately. 

52.  The  verse  is  partly  connected  with  v.  46,  but  the  closing  part, 
showing  how  Saul  gathered  his  army  goes  well  with  v.  48. 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


days  of  Saul:  and  when  Saul  saw  any  mighty  man, 
or  any  valiant  man,  he  took  him  unto  him. 
15.  And  Samuel  said  unto  Saul,  The  Lord  sent  me  to 
anoint  thee  to  be  king  ^  over  his  people,^  over  Israel: 
now  therefore  hearken  thou  unto  the  voice  of  the 

2.  words  ^  of  the  Lord.  Thus  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts, 
I  have  marked  that  which  Amalek  did  to  Israel,  how 
he  set  himself  against  him  in  the  way,  when  he  came 

3.  up  out  of  Egypt.  Now  go  and  smite  Amalek,  and 
utterly  destroy  ^  all  that  they  have,  and  spare  them 
not;  but  slay  both  man  and  woman,  infant  and  suck- 
ling, ox  and  sheep,  camel  and  ass. 

1  Lacking  in  G.  2  Lacking  in  G.  properly.  ^  g.  adds  them,  and. 

(2)  Satd's  war  against  Amalek,  his  disobedience  and  rejection,  ch.  15 

It  is  assumed  in  the  narrative  that  this  war  is  Saul's  first  act  as 
king,  and  that  he  is  entirely  under  Samuel's  orders.  The  marked 
hostility  to  Saul's  rule  adds  to  the  reason  for  classing  thispassage  with 
the  stories  in  chs.  7;  8;  10:  17-25;  12.  (See  Introduction.)  It  is  a 
parallel  to  13:  7b-i5a,  neither  account  of  Saul's  rejection  containing 
allusion  to  the  other,  or  allowing  for  a  second  deposition.  As  the 
Philistines  are  assumed  to  have  been  completely  defeated  under 
Samuel  (ch.  7),  to  find  an  enemy,  Saul  must  go  far  away  to  the  desert 
regions  bordering  on  Egypt. 

Saul  is  ordered  to  exterminate  the  Amalekites  as  an  act  of  revenge, 
vs.  1-3.  I.  Sent  me  to  anoint  thee  goes  back  to  the  story  in 
chs.  8,  10:  17-25,  12,  of  which  this  is  the  sequel. 

2.  Marked,  correctly  visited  with  punishment.  Therefore  we  should 
render:  /  will  punish  or  avenge.  Amalek  attacked  Israel  soon  after 
the  escape  from  Egypt;  Ex.  17  :8-i6;  Num.  14  :  45;  Deut.  25  :  19. 
The  present  war  is  in  execution  of  the  threat  of  Ex.  17  :  16.  It  is 
implied  that  Israel  does  not  engage  in  unprovoked  war,  and  the 
wrongs  of  Israel  justify  the  extermination  of  the  offending  tribe. 

3.  Utterly  destroy.  The  word  is  usually  translated  devote.  The 
term  implies  the  setting  apart  from  ordinary  use,  and  so  often  as 
here  to  exterminate.  Iirfant,  better  child,  as  the  combination  of  child 
and  baby  indicates  the  slaughter  of  children  of  all  ages. 

123 


15:4  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


4.  And  Saul  summoned  the  people,  and  numbered  them 
in  Telaim,  two  hundred  thousand  footmen/  and  ten 

5.  thousand  men  of  Judah.^    And  Saul  came  to  the  city  ^ 

6.  of  Amalek,  and  laid  wait  in  the  valley.  And  Saul 
said  unto  the  Kenites,  Go,  depart,  get  you  down  from 
among  the  Amalekites,^  lest  I  destroy  you  with  them:  ^ 
for  ye  shewed  kindness  to  all  the  children  of  Israel, 
when  they  came  up  out  of  Egypt.     So  the  Kenites 

7.  departed  from  among  the  Amalekites.  And  Saul 
smote  the  Amalekites,  from  Havilah  as  thou  goest  to 

8.  Shur,  that  is  before  Egypt.    And  he  took  Agag  the 

1  Lacking  in  G.  ^G.  cities.  ^  G.  do  not  join  thyself  with  ihem. 

Saul  gathers  an  army  and  defeats  Amalek,  but  reserves  the  king 
and  the  best  of  the  booty,  vs.  4-9.  4.  Telaim,  in  Josh.  15  :  24, 
Telem,  one  of  the  cities  on  the  southern  border  of  Egypt.  This 
was  probably  the  point  of  concentration,  where  the  warriors  were 
directed  to  assemble.  The  number  of  warriors  is  impossibly  large, 
but  late  writers  are  inclined  to  predicate  big  things  of  the  early 
days.  The  structure  of  the  sentence  in  Heb.  shows  that  the  Judean 
force  is  a  clumsy  addition. 

5.  Laid  wait  in  the  valley  or  wadi,  the  low  bed  of  a  stream.  Saul's 
purpose  was  to  remain  in  hiding  along  one  of  the  routes  traversed 
by  the  Bedouin  foe  until  he  could  fall  upon  them  unexpectedly. 
His  force  could  not  have  been  large.  And  for  the  end  in  view  it 
would  not  need  to  be  large. 

6.  The  Kenites  were  a  friendly  people  according  to  Judg.  i  :  16, 
the  stock  into  which  Moses  married,  cf.  Num.  10  :  29  f.,  Judg.  4  :  17. 
The  notice  to  them  and  their  departure  is  deemed  inconsistent  with 
Saul's  plans  of  secrecy.  That  would  be  the  case  only  if  they  were 
actually  mingled  with  the  quarry.  The  warning  may  have  been  a 
hint  to  take  themselves  and  their  cattle  out  of  the  neighborhood. 

7.  Havilah  is  mentioned  as  a  place  remote  from  Palestine,  Gen. 
2:11,  10  :  7,  29.  Such  a  location  would  not  serve  here.  Either 
the  text  is  corrupt,  or  a  place  no  longer  known  is  meant.  Shur  was 
on  the  border  of  Egypt.  The  writer  supposes  the  campaign  to  cover 
a  large  amount  of  territory. 

8.  Agag  alive.  The  captive  king,  like  the  reserved  booty,  and  the 
monument,  was  to  mark  Saul's  triumph. 

124 


THE  FIRSTjBOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


king  of  the  Amalekites  alive,  and  utterly  destroyed 
9.  all  the  people  with  the  edge  of  the  sword.  But  Saul 
and  the  people  spared  Agag,^  and  the  best  of  the 
sheep,  and  of  the  oxen,  and  of  the  fatlings,  and  the 
lambs,  and  all  that  was  good,  and  would  not  utterly 
destroy  them:  but  every  thing  that  was  vile  and 
refuse,  that  they  destroyed  utterly. 

10.  Then  came  the  word  of  the  Lord  unto  Samuel,  saying, 

11.  It  repenteth  me  that  I  have  set  up  Saul  to  be  king: 
for  he  is  turned  back  from  following  me,  and  hath 
not  performed  my  commandments.    And  Samuel  was 

12.  wroth;  and  he  cried  unto  the  Lord  all  night.  And 
Samuel  rose  early  to  meet  Saul  ^  in  the  morning;  and 
it  was  told  Samuel,  saying,  Saul  came  to  Carmel,  and, 

^  G.  adds  alive.  -  G.  Israel. 

9.  The  people  were  associated  with  Saul  in  the  act  of  disobedience; 
later  he  blames  them  for  the  error,  vs.  20,  24.  Fatlings  involves  an 
emendation  of  the  text,  but  is  accepted  by  many,  though  the  word 
is  very  doubtful. 

Samuel  appears,  upbraids  the  king,  and  pronounces  his  rejection 
from  the  throne,  vs.  10-23.  1 1-  It  repenteth  me.  The  idea  is  brought 
out  that  God's  appointment  was  conditional,  so  that  a  king  held 
ofl&ce  only  during  good  behavior.  Wroth  does  not  seem  to  be  the 
right  idea,  otherwise  the  all  night  appeal  would  be  meaningless. 
G.  reads  was  disquieted,  certainly  expressing  a  more  appropriate  feel- 
ing. 

12.  Samuel  s  all  night  pleas  had  produced  a  message,  v.  16,  and 
early  in  the  morning  he  sets  out  to  execute  the  divine  decree.  In  G. 
the  order  of  names  is  reversed,  a  fact  unnoticed  by  the  commentators: 
It  was  told  Saul  had  come  to  Carmel,  a  place  a  few  miles  south  of 
Hebron,  in  itself  a  more  natural  situation.  A  monument  to  commemo- 
rate his  victory.  G.  makes  Samuel  the  subject  and  has  an  additional 
clause:  and  he  turned  his  chariot  and  went  down  to  Gil  gal  to  Saul,  and 
behold  he  was  offering  a  sacrifice  to  Jahveh,  the  best  of  the  booty  which 
he  had  taken  from  Amalek.  According  to  this  text  Samuel  comes 
upon  Saul  at  a  sacred  place  in  the  very  act  of  making  his  guilty 
offering;  cf.  13  :  10. 

125 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


behold,  he  set  him  up  a  monument,  and  is  gone  about, 

13.  and  passed  on,  and  gone  down  to  Gilgal.  And  Samuel 
came  to  Saul:  and  Saul  said  unto  him,  Blessed  be 
thou  of  the  Lord:  I  have  performed  the  command- 

14.  ment  of  the  Lord.  And  Samuel  said,  What  meaneth 
then  this  bleating  ^  of  the  sheep  in  mine  ears,  and  the 

15.  lowing  ^  of  the  oxen  which  I  hear?  And  Saul  said, 
They  have  brought  them  from  the  Amalekites:  for  the 
people  spared  the  best  of  the  sheep  and  of  the  oxen,  to 
sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  thy  God;  and  the  rest  we  have 

16.  utterly  destroyed.  Then  Samuel  said  unto  Saul,  Stay, 
and  I  will  tell  thee  what  the  Lord  hath  said  to  me  this 

17.  night.    And  he  said  unto  him.  Say  on.      And  Samuel 

1  Heb.  voice  or  sound. 

13  f .  Blessed  be  thou.  Saul's  words  show  that  he  was  full  of  joy 
at  his  great  victory,  and  is  quite  unaware  of  any  transgression.  The 
captured  animals  would  naturally  pour  forth  their  cries.  That 
Samuel  makes  no  reference  to  any  sacrifice  counts  against  the  Greek 
text  cited  above,  but  does  not  exclude  it. 

15.  The  people  spared.  In  v.  9  we  read  that  Saul  and  the  people 
saved  the  best  animals  for  sacrifice;  here  the  king  puts  the  whole 
responsibility  on  the  troops.  Failings  and  lambs  as  v.  9  are  not  men- 
tioned here,  adding  to  our  suspicion  of  that  verse.  Sheep  and  oxen 
are  comprehensive  enough,  cf.  v.  21. 

16.  This  night,  lit.  the  night.  The  meaning  can  only  be  the  past 
night  here,  v.  11,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  elsewhere  the  reference 
is  always  to  the  coming  night.  The  words  of  the  seer  show  what  had 
come  to  him  during  his  long  intercession. 

17.  The  text  is  diflScult  and  the  translation  uncertain.  The  Eng- 
lish versions  are  very  questionable.  The  best  rendering  is:  Wast  thou 
not  too  small  in  thy  eyes  to  he  head  of  the  tribes  of  Israel?  Yet  Jahveh 
hath  anointed  thee  king  over  Israel.  G.  has  an  amplified  text  which 
may  be  more  original :  Wast  thou  not  too  little  in  thy  eyes  to  he  a  leader 
of  the  trihe  of  Benjamin,  the  smallest  trihe  of  Israel?  Yet  Jahveh,  etc. 
The  idea  is  plainly  to  emphasize  Jahveh's  exaltation  of  Saul  to  a  posi- 
tion beyond  what  he  had  any  claim  to,  and  so  to  establish  an  obliga- 
tion of  obedience. 

126 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


said,  Though  thou  wast  Httle  in  thine  own  sight,  wast 
thou  not  made  the  head  of  the  tribes  of  Israel?  And 
i8.  the  Lord  anointed  thee  king  over  Israel;  and  the 
Lord  sent  thee  on  a  journey,  and  said.  Go  and  utterly 
destroy  the  sinners  i  the  Amalekites,  and  fight  against 

19.  them  until  they  be  consumed.  Wherefore  then  didst 
thou  not  obey  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  but  didst  fly 
upon  the  spoil,  and  didst  that  which  was  evil  in  the 

20.  sight  of  the  Lord?  And  Saul  said  unto  Samuel,  Yea, 
I  have  obeyed  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  and  have  gone 
the  way  which  the  Lord  sent  me,  and  have  brought 
Agag  ^  the  king  of  Amalek,  and  have  utterly  destroyed 

21.  the  Amalekites.  But  the  people  took  of  the  spoil, 
sheep  and  oxen,  the  chief  of  the  devoted  things,  to 

22.  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  thy  God  in  Gilgal.  And 
Samuel  said,  Hath  the  Lord  as  great  delight  in  burnt 
offerings  and  sacrifices,  as  in  obeying  the  voice  of  the 
Lord?    Behold,  to  obey  is  better  than  sacrifice,  and  to 

1  G.  adds  against  me.  2  q_  adds  alive  as  v.  8. 

18.  Sinners  in  view  of  their  hostility  to  Israel.  They  be  consumed 
is  based  on  a  necessarily  emended  text,  as  the  Hebrew  reads  until 
they  have  consumed  them.    G.  reads  until  thou  hast  consumed  them. 

19.  Fly.  The  verb  is  a  denominative  from  a  noun  meaning  a 
bird  of  prey,  hence  pounce  eagerly.  The  expression  is  more  suitable 
in  14  :  32,  its  only  other  occurrence,  for  here  the  reproach  was  not 
for  greedily  devouring  the  booty,  and  for  saving  it  alive. 

20.  G.  reads,  becatise  I  listened  to  the  demand  [voice]  of  the  people. 
So  Saul  explains  the  saving  of  the  animals  as  the  work  of  his  army, 
in  agreement  with  vs.  9,  21,  24.  Otherwise  he  insists  that  he  has 
executed  his  orders. 

22.  Samuel  expresses  in  beautiful  language  the  common  prophetic 
conception  of  God's  demands  upon  the  people,  cf.  Am.  5  :  2iflF.,  Hos. 
6  : 6,  Is.  I  :  II  ff.,  Mic.  6  :  8ff.  The  prophetic  religion  was  ethical 
rather  than  ceremonial. 

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23.  hearken  than  the  fat  of  rams.  For  rebelhon  is  as  the 
sin  of  witchcraft,  and  stubbornness  is  as  idolatry  and 
teraphim.  Because  thou  hast  rejected  the  word  of  the 
Lord,  he  hath  also  rejected  thee  from  being  king.^ 

24.  And  Saul  said  unto  Samuel,  I  have  sinned:  for  I  have 
transgressed  the  commandment  of  the  Lord,  and  thy 
words:  because  I  feared  the  people,  and  obeyed  their 

25.  voice.  Now  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  pardon  my  sin,  and 
turn  again  with  me,  that  I  may  worship  the  Lord. 

26.  And  Samuel  said  unto  Saul,  I  will  not  return  with 
thee:  for  thou  hast  rejected  the  word  of  the  Lord,  and 
the  Lord  hath  rejected  thee  from  being  king  over 

27.  Israel.    And  as  Samuel  turned  about  to  go  away,  he  ^ 

1  G.  adds  over  Israel,  as  v.  26.  -  G.  Saul. 

23.  Witchcraft  or  divination  was  put  down  by  Saul  himself  accord- 
ing to  ch.  28.  Stubbornness  lit.  causing  to  pushy  hence  probably  pre- 
sumption, i.  e.,  in  taking  upon  himself  the  modifying  of  the  prophet's 
order.  Teraphim  were  images,  sometimes  in  human  form,  and  were 
considered  harmless  in  David's  time,  19  :  13,  cf.  Peters,  Relig.  of  the 
Hebrews,  99  f . 

Saul  pleads  for  recognition  before  the  people,  vs.  24-31.  By  several 
scholars  this  paragraph  is  regarded  as  an  addition.  The  chief  reasons 
being  that  Samuel's  attitude  towards  Saul  relents,  and  the  state- 
ment that  God  never  repents.  The  slaughter  of  Agag  would  in- 
dicate that  Samuel's  feelings  had  not  changed. 

24.  I  have  sinned.  In  view  of  the  decree  of  deposition,  the  king 
at  last  awakes  to  his  fault,  but  blames  it  upon  his  fear  of  the  people. 
They  were  determined  to  save  the  valuable  spoils,  which  doubtless 
they  sadly  needed,  and  Saul  dare  not  risk  his  throne  by  thwarting 
them. 

25.  Pardon  my  sin,  an  act  at  the  time  regarded  as  quite  within 
the  power  of  a  man  of  God,  cf.  Ex.  10  :  17,  Mt.  9  :  2  fif.  Turn  with  me, 
or  better  return  as  the  same  Hebrew  word  is  rendered  in  v.  26.  The 
meeting  had  taken  place  apart  from  the  camp,  and  now  that  Saul 
has  confessed  and  asked  forgiveness,  he  desires  the  prophet  to  go 
back  with  him  to  the  possibly  interrupted  sacrifice,  so  as  to  have 
Samuel's  approbation  before  the  people. 

27.  Laid  hold.     Saul  may  have  intended  to  take  Samuel  back 

J28 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


laid  hold  upon  the  skirt  of  his  robe,  and  it  rent. 

28.  And  Samuel  said  unto  him,  The  Lord  hath  rent  the 
kingdom  of  Israel  from  thee  this  day,  and  hath  given 
it  to  a  neighbour  of  thine,  that  is  better  than  thou. 

29.  And  also  the  Strength  of  Israel  will  not  lie  nor  repent: 

30.  for  he  is  not  a  man,  that  he  should  repent.  Then 
he  said,  I  have  sinned:  yet  honour  me  now,  I  pray 
thee,  before  the  elders  of  my  people,  and  before 
Israel,  and  turn  again  with  me,  that  I  may  worship 

31.  the  Lord  thy  God.  So  Samuel  turned  again  after 
Saul;  and  Saul  worshipped  the  Lord. 

32.  Then  said  Samuel,  Bring  ye  hither  to  me  Agag  the 
king  of  the  Amalekites.     And  Agag  came  unto  him 

by  force,  or  the  seizing  of  the  robe  may  have  been  only  to  reinforce 
his  supplication.  That  the  robe  was  torn,  indicates  that  the  scene 
was  violent. 

28.  The  tearing  of  a  robe  was  a  highly  symbolical  act,  i  Kings 
II  :  30  f;  but  the  spoiling  of  his  garment  apparently  angers  the  seer, 
for  he  goes  further  than  before  in  declaring  that  his  successor  is 
already  appointed,  cf.  13  :  14.  Neighbour  or  companion  presupposes 
such  a  situation  as  we  have  later  when  David  is  an  honored  attache 
of  Saul's  court. 

29.  Strength,  or  better  with  Driver,  the  Glory  of  Israel.  Such  terms 
for  the  deity  are  marks  of  a  late  period.  Repent.  The  rejection  of 
Saul  had  been  based  wholly  on  the  declaration  that  Jahveh  had 
repented,  v.  11.  The  doctrine  taught  now  is  that  a  divine  decree 
is  unalterable. 

30.  Saul's  request  is  now  {cf.  v.  25)  that  he  may  be  privileged  to 
keep  up  the  appearances  of  the  royal  position.  The  elders  were  the 
leaders  of  the  various  clans  which  made  up  the  army. 

31.  The  relenting  of  Samuel  is  quite  contrary  to  his  usual  attitude. 
Samuel  slays  Agag  and  returns  to  Ramah,  vs.  32-34.  The  passage 
connects  closely  with  v.  23,  Immediately  after  the  rebuke  was  the 
time  for  the  complete  execution  of  the  decree  of  extermination. 

32.  Delicately  is  weak  and  inappropriate.  Tolteringly  may  be 
extracted  from  the  rare  Hebrew  word,  and  that  suits  Agag's  remark. 
Apparently  he  had  been  badly  wounded  and  was  now  so  weak  and 
depressed  over  his  calamity  that  death  would  be  a  relief. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


delicately.    And  Agag  said,  Surely  the  bitterness  of 

33.  death  is  past.  And  Samuel  said,  As  thy  sword  hath 
made  women  childless,  so  shall  thy  mother  be  childless 
among  women.  And  Samuel  hewed  Agag  in  pieces 
before  the  Lord  in  Gilgal. 

34.  Then  Samuel  went  to  Ramah;  and  Saul  went  up  to  his 

35.  house  to  Gibeah  of  Saul.  And  Samuel  came  no  more 
to  see  Saul  until  the  day  of  his  death;  for  Samuel 
mourned  for  Saul:  and  the  Lord  repented  that  he  had 
made  Saul  king  over  Israel. 

33.  Hewed  in  pieces  is  the  traditional  rendering  of  a  word  used 
only  here,  and  the  meaning  of  which  is  quite  unknown.  That  Samuel 
slew  Agag  as  a  sacrifice  is  quite  clear,  but  there  is  no  need  to  suppose 
that  unusual  violence  was  used. 

34.  This  parting  shows  an  interview  between  Samuel  and  Saul  of 
which  we  have  no  record. 

35.  This  statement  is  contradicted  in  19  :  24,  but  the  latter  passage 
is  late  and  belongs  to  another  source.  Samuel  mourned  because  Saul 
had  failed  either  to  show  the  qualities  of  a  king  or  to  do  anything 
effective  to  relieve  his  people  of  their  distress.  For  the  same  reason 
Jahveh  repented  his  choice  of  a  king.  Such  a  statement  would  have 
no  place  if  it  originally  followed  15  : 1-33. 

Ch.  16  is  all  assigned  to  T,  the  early  source.  The  real  beginning 
of  this  story  is  15  :  34  f.,  in  which  we  have  a  reference  to  an  interview 
between  Samuel  and  Saul,  of  which  there  is  no  record  in  T,  but  for 
which  we  may  have  a  late  substitute  in  13  :  yb-isa.  It  was  the  last 
interview  between  these  two.  Samuel  had  been  greatly  disappointed 
in  the  work  of  the  man  he  had  inspired  to  take  the  throne.  Samuel 
had  under  God  made  Saul  king  to  rescue  Israel  from  the  Philistines, 
but  he  had  taken  no  action  until  his  hand  was  forced  by  Jonathan, 
and  even  then  his  efforts  were  made  abortive  by  his  rash  oath.  The 
natural  result  is  that  Samuel  mourned  for  Saul,  that  is  lamented 
that  his  rule  was  so  unpromising,  and  that  Jahveh  repented  his 
choice  of  a  king,  a  statement  quite  absurd  after  13  :  7b-i5a  and  15  : 

In  ch.  16  we  find  Jahveh  resolved  to  put  another  king  in  Saul's 
place,  and  we  find  that  Samuel  is  afraid  of  Saul.  Evidently  this  is 
not  the  Samuel  who  had  so  mercilessly  denounced  the  king  to  his 
face  and  declared  that  he  was  to  be  supplanted  by  one  more  worthy. 
Nor  is  this  the  Saul  who  had  cringed  and  begged  at  Samuel's  feet, 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


2.  The  Second  Stage:  David  is  Attached  to  SauVs  Court, 

i6: 1-18  : 4 

16.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Samuel,  How  long  wilt  thou 

mourn  for  Saul,  seeing  I  have  rejected  him  from  being 

king  over  Israel?  fill  thine  horn  with  oil,  and  go,  I  will 

send  thee  to  Jesse  the  Beth-lehemite:  ^  for  I  have 

2.  provided  me  a  king  among  his  sons.    And  Samuel 

1  G.  /o  Bethlehem,  in  some  texts  preceding  to  Jesse. 

but  the  Saul  who  would  have  put  Jonathan  and  David  to  death, 
and  who  did  slay  without  scruple  the  priests  of  Nob. 

In  N  the  king  is  chosen  by  lot  from  all  the  tribes  of  Israel,  in  T  he 
is  chosen  directly  by  Jahveh,  and  that  is  the  method  here.  In  T 
the  chosen  one  is  anointed  by  the  seer,  and  then  turned  free  to  win 
his  kingdom  as  he  may,  and  that  is  precisely  the  method  here. 

We  notice  that  Samuel  does  not  say  a  word  to  the  Bethlehemites 
or  to  Jesse  or  to  David  about  the  kingdom;  nor  is  David  told  the 
purpose  of  his  anointing.  Anointing  was  very  common,  and  the  rite 
was  applied  to  material  things  and  to  men,  and  men  were  anointed 
for  many  purposes.  The  result  of  the  anointing  of  David  was  that 
Jahveh  was  with  him  from  that  day  forward,  and  as  a  consequence 
he  did  many  valiant  deeds;  but  he  may  never  have  dreamt  that  he 
was  to  become  a  king.  The  heroic  deeds  in  guerilla  war  performed  by 
David  under  the  influence  of  Jahveh's  spirit  explain  the  reputation 
that  he  soon  attained,  and  which  led  to  his  choice  as  court  musician 
to  the  psychopathic  king. 

It  is  usually  assumed  that  David  was  a  mere  boy  at  the  time  of 
the  anointing.  As  a  matter  of  fact  there  is  not  a  word  in  the  passage 
to  indicate  his  age.  He  was  the  youngest  of  Jesse's  sons,  but  so  far 
as  that  goes  he  might  have  been  forty.  He  was  of  fair  complexion 
and  handsome,  but  those  qualities  do  not  imply  boyhood.  A  reason- 
able guess  is  that  he  was  in  the  early  twenties.  The  most  distinguished 
hero  of  the  British  Royal  Flying  Squadron  was  23  years  old.  There- 
fore the  same  David  serves  in  vs.  14-23  as  the  noted  warrior. 

(i)  David  is  anointed  by  Samuel,  16: 1-13 

1.  Jahveh  reproves  the  prophet  for  lamenting  the  loss  of  one 
rejected  by  him,  since  steps  must  be  taken  to  put  the  divine  decree 
into  effect.  Horn,  commonly  used  as  a  vessel  among  a  primitive 
people.  Similarly  Samuel  had  used  a  vial  of  oil  for  the  anointing  of 
Saul,  10  :  I. 

2.  Will  kill  me.     Saul  slew  the  priests  of  Nob  for  befriending 

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l6:3  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


said.  How  can  I  go?  if  Saul  hear  it,  he  will  kill  me. 
And  the  Lord  said,  Take  an  heifer  with  thee,  and  say, 
3. 1  am  come  to  sacrifice  to  the  Lord.  And  call  Jesse  to 
the  sacrifice,  and  I  will  shew  thee  what  thou  shalt  do: 
and  thou  shalt  anoint  unto  me  him  whom  I  name  unto 

4.  thee.  And  Samuel  did  that  which  the  Lord  spake, 
and  came  to  Bethlehem.  And  the  elders  of  the  city- 
came  to  meet  him  trembling,  and  said,  Comest  thou 

5.  peaceably?  And  he  said.  Peaceably:  I  am  come  to 
sacrifice  unto  the  Lord:  sanctify  yourselves,  and  come 
with  me  to  the  sacrifice.    And  he  sanctified  Jesse  and 

David  when  he  was  a  fugitive,  22  :  9  ff.;  Samuel  might  well  have  hesi- 
tated to  instigate  a  rebellion  even  against  one  rejected  of  God,  for 
Saul  still  held  the  position  as  king.  Samuel  is  told  to  allege  an  inci- 
dental mission  in  place  of  his  real  one.  The  prophet  supposed  aU 
his  plans  to  come  from  God.  Take  an  heifer  or  calf  suggests  that 
the  animal  was  led  all  the  way  from  Ramah,  but  we  cannot  press  the 
details  of  a  story  like  this.  Still  the  taking  of  the  calf  would  serve 
to  disarm  the  suspicion  of  any  spies  of  Saul  that  might  see  him.  Sam- 
uel is  really  afraid  of  Saul. 

3.  The  prophets  felt  assured  of  constant  divine  guidance,  Am.  7:15, 
Jer.  I  :  7  f .  Whom  I  name.  Samuel  had  been  told  in  advance  that 
the  new  king  would  be  one  of  Jesse's  sons;  the  disclosure  of  the 
individual  was  reserved  till  the  moment  for  action  came.  In  the 
anointing  of  Saul,  there  was  no  such  reservation,  9  :  15  fif.  In  the  man- 
ner of  choosing  the  king,  by  direct  designation,  not  by  lot,  this  story 
is  allied  to  the  older  version  of  the  choosing  of  Saul. 

4.  Trembling.  The  fear  of  the  elders  suggests  that  Samuel's 
visits  to  various  parts  of  the  country  did  not  always  bring  joy.  The 
prophets  were  usually  messengers  of  dark  tidings.  Peaceably  is 
reminiscent  of  ambassadors  who  might  bring  a  warlike  message. 
It  is  better  to  render,  7^  thy  coming  auspicious? 

5.  Come  with  me  to  the  sacrifice.  If  the  elders  were  really  pre- 
sented at  the  sacrifice,  as  the  words  imply,  then  the  anointing  of 
David  was  not  secret,  an  idea  on  which  Smith  lays  much  stress. 
G.  makes  the  point  plainer  reading,  and  rejoice  with  me  today,  i.  e.,  in 
view  of  what  he  was  to  do.  Sanctify.  The  elders  were  left  to 
perform  the  necessary  rites  of  purification  themselves,  but  it  is  said 
that  Samvel  himself  made  sure  of  the  fitness  of  Jesse's  family.    The 

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THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


6.  his  sons,  and  called  them  to  the  sacrifice.  And  it  came 
to  pass,  when  they  v/ere  come,  that  he  looked  on  Eliab, 
and  said,  Surely  the  Lord's  anointed  is  before  him. 

7.  But  the  Lord  said  unto  Samuel,  Look  not  on  his 
countenance,  or  on  the  height  of  his  stature;  because 
I  have  rejected  him:  for  the  Lord  seeth  ^  not  as  man 
seeth;  for  man  looketh  on  the  outward  appearance, 

8.  but  the  Lord  looketh  on  the  heart.  Then  Jesse  called 
Abinadab,  and  made  him  pass  before  Samuel.    And 

9.  he  said.  Neither  hath  the  Lord  chosen  this.^  Then 
Jesse   made   Shammah   to   pass   by.    And   he   said, 

10.  Neither  hath  the  Lord  chosen  this.-    And  Jesse  made 


1  The  italicized  words  are  rightly  in  G.  2  Qr,  this  one. 

Statement  is  difficult,  for  Samuel  later  did  not  know  of  the  existence 
of  David,  and  had  apparently  never  seen  the  other  sons  till  they 
appeared  at  the  feast.  Instead  of  sanctified  we  should^  probably 
read  sent  for.  The  elders  were  present,  but  the  proceeding  would 
be  vain  unless  the  presence  of  Jesse's  sons  was  assured. 

6.  Eliab  was  in  Saul's  army,  according  to  a  late  story,  17  :  28,  and 
was  large  and  impressive,  v.  7,  hence  Samuel  thought  Jesse's  oldest 
son  was  the  choice  of  Jahveh,  cf.  10  :  23. 

7.  Countenance  is  too  hmited.  The  word  means  what  may  be  seen, 
hence  appearance.  Eliab  was  evidently  a  fine  looking  man.  Outward 
appearance  on  the  other  hand  is  a  generous  rendering  of  a  word  that 
means  eyes,  though  the  lexicons  go  almost  as  far.  Countenance  would 
be  better  here,  and  the  use  would  not  be  strained.  The  heart  is 
apphed  to  the  seat  of  intelligence  and  of  the  secret  motives  which 
dominate  one's  life,  hence  it  is  the  test  in  God's  judgment. 

8  f .  Abinadab  was  the  second  in  age  and  Shammah  the  third  ac- 
cording to  17  :  13.  The  honor  would  naturally  fall  to  the  eldest,  and 
then  to  the  next  in  age  successively.  Chosen  unplies  that  Jahveh 
spoke  to  Samuel  as  in  v.  7. 

10.  Seven  of  his  sons  is  an  inaccurate  rendering  to  make  the  num- 
ber agree  with  the  facts,  but  the  Hebrew  means,  his  seven  sons.  The 
error  is  only  apparent,  for  these  were  all  the  sons  who  were  with  their 
father  at  the  feast.  According  to  17  :  12  Jesse  had  eight  sons,  but 
only  four  are  known  by  name.  In  i  Chr.  2  :  13-15  there  are  seven 
sons  uicluding  David;  three  of  them  are  not  mentioned  elsewhere, 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


seven  of  his  sons  to  pass  before  Samuel.    And  Samuel 

1 1 .  said  unto  Jesse,  The  Lord  hath  not  chosen  these.  And 
Samuel  said  unto  Jesse,  Are  here  all  thy  children?  * 
And  he  said,  There  remaineth  yet  the  youngest,  and, 
behold,  he  keepeth  the  sheep.  And  Samuel  said  unto 
Jesse,  Send  and  fetch  him:  for  we  will  not  sit  down  till 

12.  he  come  hither.  And  he  sent,  and  brought  him  in. 
Now  he  was  ruddy,  and  withal  of  a  beautiful  coun- 
tenance, and  goodly  to  look  upon.     And  the  Lord 

13.  said.  Arise,  anoint  him:  for  this  is  he.  Then  Samuel 
took  the  horn  of  oil,  and  anointed  him  in  the  midst  of 
his  brethren:  and  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  came  mightily 
upon  David  from  that  day  forward.  So  ^  Samuel 
rose  up,  and  went  to  Ramah. 

1  Better,  boys  2  Better  then. 

and  the  implication  of  1 7  :  1 2  f .  is  that  Jesse  had  only  the  four  sons 
actually  named  here. 

11.  Sit  down  implies  a  correction  of  the  text,  accepted  by  Driver 
and  others.  The  Heb.  word  means  turn  or  walk  around.  Perhaps 
Samuel  means  that  they  will  not  turn  away  from  the  task  until 
he  has  seen  Jesse's  last  son.  There  may  be  no  thought  of  sitting  at 
a  table. 

12.  Ruddy,  or  red,  so  17  :  42,  otherwise  only  applied  to  Esau  as  a 
babe,  Gen.  25  :  25.  In  17  :  42  it  marks  a  basis  of  contempt.  It  is  un- 
certain whether  it  applies  to  the  hair  or  the  countenance.  The  de- 
scription varies  somewhat  in  17  :  42.  The  text  is  scarcely  sound,  and 
we  may  correct  with  Smith  and  read:  a  youth  of  fine  eyes  and  goodly 
appearance,  though  eyes,  while  literal,  may  be  too  specific.  Anoint. 
We  should  either  follow  G:  anoint  David,  thus  giving  point  to  the 
phrase  for  this  is  he;  or,  perhaps  better,  restore  some  lost  words, 
thus:  anoint  him,  for  this  one  I  have  chosen,  in  contrast  to  those  rejected 
before. 

13.  His  brethren.  The  anointing  was  not  secret,  for  the  elders 
must  have  been  present  too,  cf.  on  v.  5.  Spirit  came  or  rushed  as 
the  result  of  the  anointing,  cf.  10  : 6.  Forward  means  that  the  spirit 
was  with  David  permanently.  Samuel  does  not  say  a  word  about 
the  throne,  but  probably  used  a  cryptic  phrase  as  he  had  to  Saul 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 

14.  Now  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  had  departed  from  Saul, 

15.  and  an  evil  spirit  from  the  Lord  troubled  him.  And 
Saul's  servants  said  unto  him,  Behold  now,  an  evil 

16.  spirit  from  ^  God  troubleth  thee.  Let  our  lord  now 
command  thy  servants,  which  are  before  thee,  to 
seek  out  a  man  who  is  a  cunning  player  on  the  harp: 
and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  the  evil  spirit  from  ^ 
God  is  upon  thee,  that  he  shall  play  with  his  hand,^ 

17.  and  thou  shalt  be  well.     And  Saul  said  unto  his 

1  Heb.  of.  2  G.  on  his  harp. 

(10  :  7)  meaning  to  seize  his  chance.  The  chance  came  in  the  deeds 
by  which  he  won  the  fame  of  v.  18,  and  in  the  slaughter  of  a  noted 
Philistine,  according  to  the  original  story  of  ch.  17. 

(2)  David's  first  introduction  to  the  court  of  Saul,  16  :  14-23 

A  mental  aihnent  had  fallen  upon  the  king,  and  at  the  suggestion 
of  his  servants  he  sent  for  David,  already  well  known  as  a  seasoned 
warrior  as  well  as  a  skillful  musician,  that  by  his  art  he  might  allay 
the  attacks  which  seized  the  king. 

14.  Spirit  of  the  Lord,  or  of  Jahveh,  is  carefully  distinguished 
from  spirit  from  Jahveh  or  spirit  of  God  which  has  a  baleful  influence. 
The  idea  is  that  the  good  spirit  is  Jahveh's  own  spirit,  while  the 
evil  spirit  is  sent  from  Jahveh,  like  Satan  in  the  book  of  Job,  or 
the  lying  spirit  in  the  mouth  of  Ahab's  prophets,  i  Kings  19  :  22  ff.i 

Saul's  disease  appears  to  be  melancholia  with  a  homicidal  tend- 
ency. Such  aflflictions  were  attributed  to  the  presence  of  an  evil 
spirit  even  in  N.  T.  times.  Troubled.  The  root  idea  seems  to  be  to 
come  upon  suddenly  and  so  to  terrify.  The  indications  are  plain  that 
the  attacks  were  periodic  and  severe.  The  verb  troubled  has  a  fre- 
quentative force. 

16.  Let  our  lord  command.  The  phrase  is  hardly  grammatical 
in  the  original,  and  the  rendering  should  probably  be:  let  our  lord 
now  say  the  word  atui  thy  servants  before  thee  will  seek.  The  courtiers 
adroitly  ask  the  king  to  order  them  to  carry  out  their  own  recommen- 
dation. Cxmning  or  expert;  the  phrase  means  literally  ofie  who  knows. 
Shall  be  well,  literally,  good  will  be  to  thee,  i.e.,  it  will  do  thee  good.  The 
power  of  music  to  soothe  mental  suffering  was  evidently  well  known. 

1  On  these  spirits,  see  my  Good  and  Evil. 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


servants,  Provide  me  now  a  man  that  can  play  well, 
i8.  and  bring  him  to  me.  Then  answered  one  of  the 
young  men,  and  said,  Behold,  I  have  seen  a  son  of 
Jesse  the  Beth-lehemite,  that  is  cunning  in  playing, 
and  a  mighty  man  of  valour,  and  a  man  of  war,  and 
prudent  in  speech,  and  a  comely  person,  and  the 

19.  Lord  is  with  him.    Wherefore  Saul  sent  messengers 
unto  Jesse,  and  said.  Send  me  David  thy  son,  which 

20.  is  with  the  sheep.    And  Jesse  took  an  ass  laden  with 
bread,  and  a  bottle  of  wine,  and  a  kid,  and  sent  them 


18.  Young  men.  In  spite  of  the  change  of  terms,  the  speaker  was 
one  of  the  body  of  servants  doing  duty  as  courtiers.  He  was  already 
personally  acquainted  with  David.  According  to  our  text  David's 
name  is  not  given,  an  evident  omission,  as  v.  19  shows  that  Saul 
knows  which  son  is  meant.  David  is  apparently  the  most  famous 
of  Jesse's  sons.  A  man  of  war  is  not  redundant,  as  it  implies  that 
David  was  experienced  in  the  art  of  war  as  well  as  valiant.  The  at- 
tainments of  David  go  beyond  the  essential  condition  of  skill  in 
music;  doubtless  in  view  of  14  :  52,  with  which  our  passage  is  closely 
associated,  his  ability  as  a  warrior  would  count  much  in  his  favor 
with  Saul.  Prudent  in  speech  would  suggest  that  David  could  be 
trusted  about  court;  but  the  idea  is  rather  clever  with  words,  and  the 
meaning  seems  to  be  that  David  was  wise  or  entertaining.  Comely 
person,  rather  a  man  of  figure,  i.  e.,  a  man  of  impressive  form. 
Jahveh  is  with  him,  the  result  of  the  anointing,  v.  13,  and  shown  in 
the  deeds  of  prowess  which,  it  is  assumed,  David  had  aheady  per- 
formed. 

19.  Which  is  with  the  sheep  is  easily  recognized  as  a  note  by  an 
editor  inserted  from  a  harmonistic  motive.  It  would  be  more  natural 
to  find  who  is  an  expert  harpist,  as  Saul  would  probably  give  Jesse 
a  reason  for  desiring  David's  presence  at  court.  Though  David 
was  mature  and  had  achieved  fame  at  arms,  he  is  subject  to  his 
father's  orders,  in  harmony  with  the  conditions  of  Hebrew  family  Ufe. 

20.  Laden  with  bread.  The  Hebrew  has  an  ass  of  bread,  ass  being 
used  as  a  measure  like  bottle.  Such  a  usage  is  unknown  and  would 
indicate  a  disproportionate  amount  of  bread,  especially  as  Jesse 
was  a  small  herdsman.  Most  scholars  substitute  ten  loaves  for  ass, 
c/.  17  :  17.  I  prefer  a  reading  suggested  by  G.:  Jesse  took  an  ass 
and  placed  upon  him  bread  and  a  skin  of  wine  and  one  kid.    Such 

136 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


21.  by  David  his  son  unto  Saul.     And  David  came  to 
Saul,  and  stood  before  him:  and  he  loved  him  greatly; 

22.  and  he  became  his  armour-bearer.    And  Saul  sent  to 
Jesse,  saying.  Let  David,  I  pray  thee,  stand  before 

23.  me;  for  he  hath  found  favour  in  my  sight.     And  it 

humble  presents  were  evidently  quite  common.    It  was  meant  as 
a  mark  of  appreciation  for  the  honor  conferred  upon  David. 

21.  Stood  before  him,  not  merely  as  a  momentary  act,  for  the 
words  really  mean  that  David  took  his  place  in  Saul's  household, 
cj.  v.  22.  Loved  him  is  an  evidence,  of  which  there  is  much  else- 
where, of  David's  winsome  personality.  Armour-bearer  denotes 
an  important  office  for  it  means  the  royal  body-guard;  it  is  clear 
that  David  was  in  close  and  constant  attendance  upon  the  king. 

22.  Stand  before  me  clearly  implies  a  permanent  position,  accord- 
ing to  Hebrew  usage.  David  might  not  be  in  attendance  at  court 
without  his  father's  consent.  The  fact  that  he  was  approved  by 
Saul  was  deemed  a  sufficient  reason. 

23.  The  verbs  are  all  frequentative,  the  tense  indicating  habitual 
action.  Evil  is  not  necessary  here,  though  of  course  the  same  spirit 
is  meant;  indeed  many  regard  the  word  evil  as  a  late  insertion  in 
vs.  14  £F.  Departed  implies  the  belief  that  the  attack  was  caused 
by  the  presence  of  the  spirit,  hence  the  relief  from  the  crisis  coin- 
cided with  the  departure  of  the  spirit.  It  is  an  interesting  idea  that 
though  it  was  a  divine  spirit,  it  was  under  certain  conditions  subject 
to  human  control.  We  note  that  though  David  was  brought  as  a 
musician,  here  and  throughout  the  history  his  military  activity 
stands  first. 

(3)  The  story  of  David's  victory  over  Goliath,  17  : 1-18  :  5,  17-1Q 

This  account  is  usually  regarded  as  unhistorical,  for  the  narrative 
shows  many  traces  of  a  late  origin,  and  in  an  early  source,  2  Sam. 
21  :  19,  it  is  recorded  that  one  of  David's  heroes,  Elhanan,  "slew 
GoHath  the  Gittite,  the  staff  of  whose  spear  was  like  a  weaver's 
beam." 

In  its  present  form  the  section  is  late  and  shows  unmistakable 
traces  of  the  national  point  of  view.  For  Saul  leads  his  army  into 
Judean  territory,  Israel  and  Judah  attack  the  fleeing  enemy  (v.  52), 
and  Goliath's  speech  presupposes  an  equality  in  the  positions  of 
the  two  combatants. 

The  story  is  highly  composite.  It  is  quite  clear  that  a  single 
original  narrative  has  been  greatly  amplified  by  combining  dupli- 
cates, and  by  additions.     The  long  passage,  vs.  12-31,  which  is 

137 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


came  to  pass,  when  the  evil  spirit  from  God  was  upon 
Saul,  that  David  took  the  harp,  and  played  with  his 
hand:  so  Saul  was  refreshed,  and  was  well,  and  the 
evil  spirit  departed  from  him. 

lacking  in  Gb.  belongs  to  another  account  of  the  story,  and  was 
the  beginning  of  that  narrative.  David  is  here  introduced  because 
in  that  version  his  history  begins  here;  vs.  19,  21,  23,  repeat  what 
is  already  told  in  vs.  i-ii.  The  compiler  has  evidently  modified 
V.  23b  to  avoid  repetition  and  possibly  contradiction,  for  Goliath's 
challenge  may  have  been  quite  different  in  the  two  sources.  There 
is  a  divergence  too  in  that  in  v.  24  the  Israelites  flee  when  the  Phil- 
istine advances;  v.  31  is  an  awkward  attempt  to  fit  the  section  to 
vs.  32  ff.;  18  :  17-19  is  the  sequel  to  this  story. 

The  passage  17  :  55-18  :  5  is  likewise  from  another  source,  whether 
the  same  as  vs.  12-31  or  not  is  hard  to  say.  Saul's  inquiry  about 
David  is  meaningless  after  their  conversation  in  vs.  32  ff.  The 
point  of  this  piece  is  to  make  David  an  attache  of  the  court,  and 
to  report  the  bond  between  Jonathan  and  David. 

When  we  relegate  these  three  sections,  17  :  12-31,  17  :  55-18  :  5, 
18  :  17-19,  to  a  parallel  and  later  version,  we  still  have  an  account 
which  betrays  much  amplification.  In  the  first  place  the  original 
story  did  not  contain  the  name  of  the  enemy  slain  by  David.  Ex- 
cept in  V.  4  and  the  duplicate  v.  23  this  foe  is  invariably  called  the 
Philistine,  and  that  is  what  he  calls  himself,  v.  8.  The  proper  desig- 
nation of  this  giant  is  Goliath  the  Gittite,  2  Sam.  21  :  19.  In  v.  23 
it  is  plain  that  Goliath  is  a  gloss,  for  the  proper  designation  the  Phil- 
istine stands  between  Goliath  and  his  name;  vs.  46,  47  is  an  ampli- 
fication of  the  account  of  Goliath  found  in  2  Sam.  21  :  19,  and  a 
substitute  for  a  simple  description  of  the  Philistine  of  the  original 
story.  The  name  of  Goliath  is  a  gloss  also  in  21  -.g  preceding  the 
proper  term  the  Philistine.  David  had  made  a  name  for  himself 
by  slaying  a  Philistine.  Goliath  was  a  famous  Gittite  warrior,  and 
to  exalt  David's  fame  the  identification  was  made. 

Another  considerable  amplification  is  in  vs.  41-47;  v.  48  follows 
directly  upon  v.  40.  David's  speech  is  filled  with  late  ideas,  and  is 
feeble  in  that  he  merely  repeats  the  threat  of  his  opponent.  There 
are  numerous  other  glosses,  which  have  been  added  from  time  to 
time  as  the  story  developed.  It  is  possible  now  to  imearth  approxi- 
mately the  original  story. 

Saul  once  more  led  his  forces  against  the  oppressors  of  his  people. 
A  Philistine  warrior  offered  a  challenge  to  single  combat,  creating 
a  panic  in  Saul's  hosts.  David  was  Saul's  armor-bearer,  and  the 
spirit  of  Jahveh  came  upon  him,  and  he  volunteered  to  meet  the  one 

138 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  17; 

17.  Now  the  Philistines  gathered  together  their  armies  to 
battle,  and  they  were  gathered  together  at  Socoh, 
which    belongeth    to   Judah,    and   pitched    between 

who  defied  Israel,  He  rejected  the  usual  equipment  of  the  soldier, 
because  he  saw  that  with  sword  and  spear  he  was  no  match  for  the 
Philistine.  He  reverted  to  the  weapons  he  had  used  in  his  boyhood, 
and  which  he  had  never  wholly  abandoned.  He  plays  around  his 
opponent,  avoiding  his  long  and  heavy  spear,  until  he  sees  an  open- 
ing, and  then  drops  him  to  earth  with  a  well-aimed  stone  from  his 
sling.  Quickly  rushing  forward,  he  takes  the  Philistine's  sword 
and  cuts  ofiF  his  head,  and  retains  the  sword  for  use  upon  the  rest  of 
the  host.  The  Philistines  flee,  the  Israelities  pursue  and  a  great 
victory  is  won,  David  using  the  sword  to  good  effect. 

The  above  is  precisely  the  necessary  setting  for  the  song  of  the 
women  in  18  17.  Saul  had  distinguished  himself,  but  David's  glory 
was  much  greater. 

It  should  be  added  that  there  is  nothing  whatever  in  the  narrative, 
even  in  its  latest  form,  which  proves  that  David  was  a  mere  boy, 
though  Cheyne  argues  that  he  could  not  have  been  over  14  (Aids 
to  the  Devout  Sttidy  of  Criticism,  p.  100).  Even  in  the  late  section, 
17  :  12-31,  Jesse  is  an  old  man,  and  his  youngest  son  is  not  necessarily 
a  kid.  Saul  says  David  is  a  youth,  vs.  ^Sj  55  f-j  so  he  was,  relative 
to  the  seasoned  warrior  he  proposed  to  attack.  The  Hebrew  term 
for  youth  is  a  very  flexible  word,  indeed  it  is  in  English,  for  it  is  al- 
ways relative;  one's  youth  may  cover  the  twenties  as  well  as  the 
teens.  The  Philistine  disdained  David,  and  the  account  of  him  is 
similar  to  that  in  16  :  1-13;  but  again  David  may  have  been  much 
smaller  and  younger  than  his  opponent,  and  still  not  be  a  young  boy. 

In  the  later  story  which  contains  the  first  account  of  the  hero, 
David  happens  to  be  at  the  front  when  a  single  Philistine  drives 
back  the  hosts  of  Israel,  and  learning  of  the  great  reward  offered  by 
the  king,  slays  the  foe  and  is  brought  before  Saul  with  the  head  in 
his  hand.  Saul  keeps  him  at  court,  and  proposes  to  give  him  his 
daughter  Merab  as  promised,  but  when  the  time  comes,  she  is  given 
to  another. 

The  challenge  to  single  combat,  vs.  i-ii.  i.  In  very  modem 
terms  we  would  say:  the  Philistines  mobilized  their  forces  for  wary 
and  they  were  concentrated  at  Socoh  .  .  .  and  they  made  their  camp. 
Socoh  lies  between  Bethlehem  and  Gath,  on  the  Judean  border.  This 
strange  combat  is  located  nearly  midway  between  the  homes  of  the 
two  participants.  Azekah  is  named  after  Socoh  in  Josh.  15  :  35,  and 
must  have  been  near.  Ephes-dammim  does  not  occur  elsewhere, 
though  there  is  a  Pas-dammim  mentioned  in  i  Chron.  11  :  13  as  the 

139 


17:2  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


2.  Socoh  and  Azekah,  in  Ephes-dammim.  And  Saul 
and  the  men  of  Israel  were  gathered  together,  and 
pitched  in  the  vale  of  Elah,  and  set  the  battle  in  array 

3.  against  the  Philistines.  And  the  PhiHstines  stood  on 
the  mountain  on  the  one  side,  and  Israel  stood  on  the 
mountain  on  the  other  side:  and  there  was  a  valley 

4.  between  them.  And  there  went  out  a  champion  out 
of  the  camp  of  the  Philistines,  named  Goliath,  of 

5.  Gath,  whose  height  was  six  ^  cubits  and  a  span.  And 
he  had  an  helmet  of  brass  ^  upon  his  head,  and  he  was 
clad  with  a  coat  of  mail;  and  the  weight  of  the  coat 

6.  was  five  thousand  shekels  of  brass. ^  And  he  had 
greaves  of  brass  ^  upon  his  legs,  and  a  javelin  of  brass  ^ 

1  G.  four.  2  Bronze. 

scene  of  one  of  David's  battles  with  the  Philistines.  As  the  name 
means  ceasing  of  blood  it  may  have  come  from  this  event,  as  the 
Philistines'  purpose  was  to  end  the  war  by  a  single  combat.  Lagarde 
suggested  on  the  edge  of  the  waters  (see  Smith),  but  there  is  little 
water  in  the  region. 

2.  Vale  of  Elah  or  valley  of  the  terebinth,  was  so  named  from  the 
prevalence  of  this  tree.  As  it  extends  from  Gath  into  the  hills  of 
Judah,  it  marks  the  course  of  the  Philistine  march. 

3.  Mountain,  better  hill,  for  the  armies  were  in  the  low  country. 
This  disposition  of  the  forces  prepares  the  way  for  the  combat  which 
takes  place  in  the  sight  of  both  armies.  Valley  or  ravine  as  Cheyne 
suggests, 

4.  Champion,  lit.  man  of  the  two  intervals,  thought  to  refer  to  the 
repeated  standing  of  the  warrior  in  the  space  between  the  two  ar- 
mies. The  text  may  be  wrong,  for  G.  offers  a  striking  variant:  there 
came  forth  the  mightiest  of  all  the  people  of  the  Philistine  army.  Goliath 
is  a  feminine,  but  Semitic  usage  justifies  the  form.  The  name  is  a 
gloss,  see  above.    Six  cubits  would  be  about  ten  feet. 

5.  Driver  points  out  that  the  armor  for  defense  was  all  of  bronze, 
while  the  weapons  of  attack  were  of  iron.  Coat  of  mail  is  properly 
armor  for  the  breast  made  in  scales  like  those  of  a  fish.  Five  thou- 
sand shekels  would  be  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  pounds.  The 
picture  of  the  giant  is  at  all  events  consistent. 

6.  Javelin  or  dart  as  a  part  of  the  defensive  armor  seems  inappro- 

140 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  17:11 


7.  between  his  shoulders.  And  the  staff  of  his  spear  was 
like  a  weaver's  beam;  and  his  spear's  head  weighed 
six  hundred  shekels  of  iron:  and  his  shield-bearer 

8.  went  before  him.  And  he  stood  and  cried  unto  the 
armies  of  Israel,  and  said  unto  them,  Why  are  ye  come 
out  to  set  your  battle  in  array?  am  not  I  a  Philistine, 
and  ye  servants  to  Saul?  choose  you  a  man  for  you, 

9.  and  let  him  come  down  to  me.  If  he  be  able  to  fight 
with  me,  and  kill  me,  then  will  we  be  your  servants: 
but  if  I  prevail  against  him,  and  kill  him,  then  shall 

10.  ye  be  our  servants,  and  serve  us.  And  the  Philistine 
said,  I  defy  the  armies  of  Israel  this  day;  give  me  a 

11.  man,  that  we  may  fight  together.  And  when  Saul  and 
all  Israel  heard  those  words  of  the  PhiHstine,  they 
were  dismayed,  and  greatly  afraid. 

priate,  and  such  a  weapon  would  not  be  carried  between  the  shoulders. 
G.  has  shield  which  gives  better  sense, 

7.  Staff.  The  Hebrew  reads  arrow,  but  in  2  Sam,  21  :  19  where  this 
weapon  is  described,  we  have  shaft  and  should  so  read  here.  The 
shield-bearer  apparently  only  accompanied  the  giant  on  parade,  for 
he  does  not  appear  to  be  present  at  the  combat;  but  see  v,  41. 

8.  Set  your  battle  in  array  or  provoke  a  battle.  The  Philistine 
is  about  to  propose  a  plan  to  make  the  battle  unnecessary,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  insure  victory  for  his  side,  for  his  confidence  in  his 
prowess  was  great.  Come  down,  since  Saul's  army  was  on  a  hill. 
The  combat  was  to  take  place  in  the  ravine  between  the  armies. 

9.  And  serve  us.  The  giant  makes  the  terms  more  emphatic  in 
case,  as  he  surely  expected,  he  be  the  victor.  Serve  means  be  subject 
to.  The  implication  is  that  the  two  peoples  are  at  the  time  on  an 
equal  footing. 

10  f.  Defy.  By  this  taunt  the  Philistine  hoped  to  force  an  Israelite 
for  very  shame  to  accept  his  challenge.  Fight  together.  G.  is  very 
specific :  both  fight  in  single  combat.  Dismayed.  It  is  assumed  that 
Saul  could  not  honorably  refuse  the  challenge.  When  David  later 
took  up  the  challenge,  the  giant's  terms  were  ignored,  as  a  general 
battle  followed. 

David's  arrival  at  the  camp  of  Israel,  vs.  12-31.  This  section  is 
141 


17:  12  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


12.  Now  David  was  the  son  of  that  Ephrathite  of  Beth- 
lehem-judah,  whose  name  was  Jesse;  and  he  had  eight 
sons:  and  the  man  was  an  old  man  in  the  days  of  Saul, 

13.  stricken  in  years  among  men.  And  the  three  eldest 
sons  of  Jesse  had  gone  after  Saul  to  the  battle:  and 
the  names  of  his  three  sons  that  went  to  the  battle  ^ 
were  Eliab  the  firstborn,  and  next  unto  him  Abinadab, 

14.  and  the  third  Shammah.    And  David  was  the  young- 

15.  est:  and  the  three  eldest  followed  Saul.  Now  David 
went  to  and  fro  from  Saul  to  feed  his  father's  sheep  at 

16.  Beth-lehem.  And  the  Philistine  drew  near  morning 
and  evening,  and  presented  himself  forty  days. 

17.  And  Jesse  said  unto  David  his  son,  Take  now  for  thy 
brethren  an  ephah  of  this  parched  com,  and  these  ten 
loaves,  and  carry  them  quickly  to  the  camp  to  thy 

18.  brethren;  and  bring  these  ten  cheeses  unto  the  captain 

1  Or  war. 

lacking  in  the  Codex  Vaticanus,  the  best  Greek  text.    It  belongs  to 
another  account  of  David;  see  above. 

12.  The  particularity  of  David's  introduction,  unnecessary  after 
c.  16,  betrays  an  independent  section.  Eight  sons,  cf.  on  16  :  10.  The 
last  clause  is  difficult,  lit.  it  says  he  went  among  men.  After  Driver 
we  may  read:  now  the  man  in  the  days  of  Saul  was  aged  among  men, 
giving  the  reason  why  he  was  not  at  the  front. 

15.  The  verse  is  evidently  introduced  by  an  editor  to  harmonize 
this  passage  with  16  :  14-23,  but  the  result  is  not  very  satisfactory. 

16.  The  author  reports  that  for  forty  days  the  giant  comes  out 
twice  each  day  to  repeat  his  challenge,  the  two  armies  meanwhile 
remaining  on  their  respective  hills. 

17.  Ephah  is  a  dry  measure  containing  a  bushel  and  a  third. 
Parched  com  is  corn  in  the  ear  roasted  over  a  fire,  and  a  common 
article  of  food  among  the  primitive  Orientals.  These  ten  loaves 
should  be  ten  loaves  of  this  bread.  The  loaves  were  usually  flat. 
The  passage  suggests  that  these  armies  were  largely  provisioned  by 
stores  of  food  sent  from  home. 

18.  Cheeses,  lit.  cuts  of  milk.    Thousand  is  equivalent  roughly  to 

142 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


of  their  thousand,  and  look  how  thy  brethren  fare,  and 

19.  take  their  pledge.  Now  Saul,  and  they,  and  all  the 
men  of  Israel,  were  in  the  vale  of  Elah,  fighting  with 

20.  the  PhiHstines.  And  David  rose  up  early  in  the 
morning,  and  left  the  sheep  with  a  keeper,  and  took, 
and  went,  as  Jesse  had  commanded  him;  and  he  came 
to  the  place  of  the  wagons,  as  the  host  which  was 

21.  going  forth  to  the  fight  shouted  for  the  battle.  And 
Israel  and  the  PhiHstines  put  the  battle  in  array,  army 

22.  against  army.  And  David  left  his  baggage  in  the 
hand  of  the  keeper  of  the  baggage,  and  ran  to  the 

2^.  army,  and  came  and  saluted  his  brethren.    And  as  he 


our  regiment.  Fare.  David  was  enjoined  to  greet  his  brothers  and 
to  learn  their  condition,  whether  well  or  ill,  whole  or  hurt.  Pledge  is 
not  clear.  It  probably  means  that  David  was  to  bring  back  some 
token  from  his  brethren. 

19.  They  naturally  refers  to  the  three  sons  at  the  front;  therefore 
the  verse  is  best  interpreted  as  a  part  of  Jesse's  directions  to 
David,  here  informing  him  where  to  go.  Or  it  may  show  how  poorly 
this  section  is  related  to  its  context,  cf.  v.  2. 

20.  Morning  following  the  day  on  which  he  had  received  his  in- 
structions. Keeper  would  not  be  applied  to  a  brother;  if  there  were 
four  still  at  home  one  of  them  would  naturally  care  for  the  sheep, 
cf.  V.  28.  Took  or  took  up,  the  load  of  provisions  he  was  to  carry  to 
the  camp.  Cheyne  reads  and  loaded  (the  ass).  Place  of  the  wagons 
is  doubtful.  Saul  could  hardly  have  had  wagons  in  the  hills,  and  en- 
trenchment  after  BDB  is  better.  To  the  fight  suggests  a  condition  in 
which  there  was  actual  fighting,  not  merely  an  armistice  while  Go- 
liath uttered  his  semi-daily  challenge. 

22.  Baggage  has  rather  a  modern  sound.  The  word  means  vessels, 
i.  e.,  those  in  which  David  had  carried  the  provisions.  The  keeper 
of  the  baggage  was  apparently  the  head  of  the  commissary  depart- 
ment, though  Smith  suggests  the  guard  of  the  equipage. 

23  f .  Same  words  refers  to  the  challenge  in  v.  8  ff .  If  this  were  the 
same  source,  there  would  be  less  detail  in  the  account  of  the  Philis- 
tine. In  G.  the  order  of  the  last  clause  is  more  natural:  were  sore 
afraid  and  fled.  They  ran  back  from  the  battle  line  to  the  entrench- 
ment. 

143 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


talked  with  them,  behold,  there  came  up  the  cham- 
pion, the  PhiHstine  of  Gath,  Gohath  by  name,  out  of 
the  ranks  of  the  PhiHs  tines,  and  spake  according  to 

24.  the  same  words:  and  David  heard  them.  And  all  the 
men  of  Israel,  when  they  saw  the  man,  fled  from  him, 

25.  and  were  sore  afraid.  And  the  men  of  Israel  said, 
Have  ye  seen  this  man  that  is  come  up?  surely  to 
defy  Israel  is  he  come  up:  and  it  shall  be,  that  the  man 
who  killeth  him,  the  king  will  enrich  him  with  great 
riches,  and  will  give  him  his  daughter,  and  make  his 

26.  father's  house  free  in  Israel.  And  David  spake  to  the 
men  that  stood  by  him,  saying.  What  shall  be  done 
to  ^  the  man  that  killeth  this  Philistine,  and  taketh 
away  the  reproach  from  Israel?  for  who  is  this  un- 
circumcised  Philistine,  that  he  should  defy  the  armies 

27.  of  the  living  God?  And  the  people  answered  him 
after  this  manner,  saying,  So  shall  it  be  done  to  the 

28.  man  that  killeth  him.    And  Eliab  his  eldest  brother 

1  Better /or. 

25.  Come  up  expresses  a  different  idea  from  v.  8,  according  to 
which  each  army  was  on  a  hill.  Men  were  deputed  to  publish  a 
proclamation  announcing  the  great  reward  for  the  conquest  of  the 
giant.  Free,  i.  e.,  from  taxes,  mihtary  service  and  all  other  obligations 
to  the  state. 

26.  David's  first  question  implies  that  he  had  not  heard  distinctly 
the  words  of  the  herald.  This  second  question  indicates  his  readiness 
to  undertake  the  task  which  all  the  men  in  the  army  shunned.  The 
living  God  suggests  a  later  source. 

27.  After  this  manner  means  that  some  person  repeated  the  terms 
of  the  reward.    Saying,  or  better,  adding. 

28.  Eliab's  anger  was  due  to  the  effrontery  of  the  youth  in  discuss- 
ing with  the  warriors  the  affairs  of  the  war.  Possibly  he  felt  the  sting 
in  David's  second  question.  Left  or  entrusted.  The  question  implies 
that  Ehab  knew  of  no  one  to  take  care  of  the  small  flock,  which  in- 
dicates Jesse's  poverty.    Pride  or  presumptuousness.    The  real  charge 

144 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  17:32 


heard  when  he  spake  unto  the  men;  and  EKab's  anger 
was  kindled  against  David,  and  he  said,  Why  art  thou 
come  down?  and  with  whom  hast  thou  left  those  few 
sheep  in  the  wilderness?  I  know  thy  pride,  and  the 
naughtiness  of  thine  heart;  for  thou  art  come  down 

29.  that  thou  mightest  see  the  battle.    And  David  said, 
What  have  I  now  done?    Is  there  not  a  cause?    And 

30.  he  turned  away  from  him  toward  another,  and  spake 
after  the  same  manner:  and  the  people  answered  him 

31.  again  after  the  former  manner.    And  when  the  words 
were  heard  which  David  spake,  they  rehearsed  them 

32.  before  Saul;  and  he  sent  for  him.    And  David  said  to 
Saul,  Let  no  man's  heart  fail  because  of  him;  thy 

is  curiosity,  which  had  led  the  boy  to  forsake  his  work  in  order  to  see 
a  fight. 

29.  The  first  question  is  an  assertion  of  innocence;  the  second  is 
difl&cult,  but  the  EngHsh  version  is  hardly  possible,  and  is  too  vague. 
The  phrase  is:  was  it  not  a  word?  This  is  understood  to  mean  that  the 
accused  asserts  that  he  had  done  nothing  but  ask  a  question.  Smith 
suggests:  "  is  it  not  a  matter  of  importance,"  but  this  strains  the  text 
to  the  utmost.  Moreover,  David's  first  question  indicates  a  minimiz- 
ing of  the  whole  affair  so  far  as  EUab  was  concerned. 

30.  From  him,  i.  e.,  from  his  brother.  After  the  same  mamier  in- 
dicates that  David  repeated  the  two  questions  of  v.  26,  and  as  the 
former  answer  was  repeated  David  heard  Saul's  offer  three  times. 
He  appears  to  be  much  concerned  about  the  character  of  the 
reward,  to  which  there  is  no  reference  in  the  earlier  account  of  the 
combat. 

31.  This  verse  is  an  editor's  attempt  to  fit  the  preceding  section 
into  the  narrative  into  which  it  is  incorporated.  The  close  is  very 
awkward;  sent  for  him  strains  the  text,  but  G.  goes  much  further 
in  the  interest  of  harmony,  reading:  atid  they  took  him  and  brought 
him  before  Saul. 

The  combat  between  David  and  Goliath,  vs.  32-54.  The  story 
of  V.  II  is  here  resumed. 

32.  No  mail's.  G.  with  better  force  reads  let  not  the  heart  of  my 
lord  fail.  The  faint-heartedness  carries  us  back  to  v.  11,  where  Saul 
is  included  in  those  seized  with  panic. 


17:33  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


33.  servant  will  go  and  fight  with  this  PhiHstine.  And 
Saul  said  to  David,  Thou  art  not  able  to  go  against 
this  PhiHstine  to  fight  with  him:  for  thou  art  but 

34.  a  youth,  and  he  a  man  of  war  from  his  youth.  And 
David  said  unto  Saul,  Thy  servant  kept  his  father's 
sheep;  and  when  there  came  a  lion,  or  a  bear,  and 

35.  took  a  lamb  out  of  the  flock,  I  went  out  after  him,  and 
smote  him,  and  delivered  it  out  of  his  mouth:  and 
when  he  arose  against  me,  I  caught  him  by  his  beard, 

36.  and  smote  him,  and  slew  him.  Thy  servant  smote 
both  the  lion  and  the  bear:  and  this  uncircumcised 
Philistine  shall  be  as  one  of  them,  seeing  he  hath 

37.  defied  the  armies  of  the  living  God.    And  David  said, 

33.  Saul  lays  no  stress  on  the  gigantic  stature  and  superior 
equipment  of  the  Philistine,  but  only  on  his  great  maturity  and 
his  large  experience  in  war. 

34  f.  David  does  not  claim  ever  to  have  fought  with  a  man,  and 
so  the  picture  is  consistent  in  this  respect  with  vs.  12-31;  he  bases 
his  confidence  on  his  experience  as  a  shepherd  in  which  he  had  slain 
the  wild  animals  that  preyed  upon  the  flock.  David's  speech  bears 
marks  of  later  amplification.  The  verbs  are  usually  interpreted  as 
frequentatives,  but  we  should  suppose  that  such  experiences  would 
not  be  common;  and  v.  36  implies  the  slaughter  of  one  lion  and  one 
bear.  Beard  would  hardly  give  a  good  hold  for  offense.  The  word 
means  chin,  or  here  the  lower  jaw.  This  method  of  killing  would 
be  more  suitable  for  David  the  mature  warrior  than  for  David  the 
ruddy  youth. 

37.  Out  of  the  paw  implies  that  the  lion  and  bear  had  already 
seized  David;  therefore  it  is  better  to  render  more  literally,  from  the 
paw.  Will  deliver  me.  David's  last  words  constitute  his  final  point 
in  the  answer  to  Saul's  objections  to  his  youth.  His  first  point  is 
that  he  has  shown  his  courage  and  skill  in  the  killing  of  a  lion  and  a 
bear;  the  second  is  that  Jahveh  will  protect  him  in  all  dangers, 
all  the  more  since  the  giant  in  taunting  Jahveh's  armies  taunted 
Jahveh  himself  with  impotence.  David  was  ever  deeply  religious. 
Shall  be.  Saul's  words  are  not  the  usual  pious  wish,  but  a  strong 
assertion  based  on  David's  revelation  of  his  character  and  of  his 
faith. 

146 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


The  Lord  that  delivered  me  out  of  the  paw  ^  of  the 
Hon,  and  out  of  the  paw  of  the  bear,  he  will  deliver 
me  out  of  the  hand  of  this  Philistine.  And  Saul  said 
unto  David,  Go,  and  the  Lord  shall  be  with  thee. 
7,S.  And  Saul  clad  David  with  his  apparel,  and  he  put  an 
helmet  of  brass  ^  upon  his  head,  and  he  clad  him  with 

39.  a  coat  of  mail.  And  David  girded  his  sword  upon 
his  apparel,  and  he  assayed  to  go;  for  he  had  not 
proved  it.  And  David  said  unto  Saul,  I  cannot  go 
with  these;  for  I  have  not  proved  them.    And  David 

40.  put  them  off  him.  And  he  took  his  staff  in  his  hand, 
and  chose  him  five  smooth  stones  out  of  the  brook, 
and  put  them  in  the  shepherd's  bag  which  he  had, 
even  in  his  scrip;  and  his  sling  was  in  his  hand:  and  he 

41.  drew  near  to  the  PhiHstine.    And  the  PhiHstine  came 

1  G.  mouth.  2  Bronze. 

38.  Apparel.  The  word  usually  refers  to  the  outer  garment;  but 
such  a  sense  would  be  unsuitable  here,  for  there  would  be  no  point 
in  dressing  David  in  Saul's  robes.  In  18  :  4  the  word  means  outfit, 
of  a  military  character,  and  the  same  idea  is  intended  here.  The 
last  sentence  is  rightly  lacking  in  G.  as  it  is  redundant  after  outfit. 

39.  His  sword.  David  had  no  sword,  and  it  is  better  to  read 
and  he  [Saul]  girded  David  with  his  sword.  Assayed  to  go  makes  no 
sense  in  connection  with  the  following  clause.  Most  modern  scholars 
follow  G.  and  read  he  labored  in  vain  to  walk;  but  a  youth  able  to 
seize  a  lion  by  the  jaw  and  slay  him  would  not  stagger  under  Saul's 
armor.  We  may  render  the  same  substituted  word :  he  was  impatient 
to  be  off,  i.  e.,  to  the  combat,  and  testing  a  strange  outfit  would  cause 
delay. 

40.  Staff  is  not  the  shepherd's  crook,  but  the  stick  carried  by 
walkers.  David  took  it  as  a  possibly  offensive  weapon.  Shepherd's 
bag  may  be  a  gloss  inaccurately  defining  scrip  or  pouch,  which  seems 
to  be  a  technical  name  for  the  bag  in  which  the  slinger  carried  his 
missiles;  or  we  may  read  with  G.,  shephcrd^s  bag  which  served  as  a 
pouch.  And  his  sling  was  in  his  hand,  is  obviously  faulty;  render: 
and  with  his  sling  in  his  hand,  he  advanced  towards  the  Philistine. 

41.  G.  lacks  this  verse,  and  it  is  at  least  superfluous,  needlessly 

147 


17:42  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


on  and  drew  near  unto  David;  and  the  man  that  bare 

42.  the  shield  went  before  him.  And  when  the  Philistine 
looked  about,  and  saw  David,  he  disdained  him:  for 
he  was  but  a  youth,  and  ruddy,  and  withal  of  a  fair 

43.  countenance.  And  the  Phihstine  said  unto  David, 
Am  I  a  dog,  that  thou  comest  to  me  with  staves?   And 

44.  the  Phihstine  cursed  David  by  his  gods.  And  the 
Phihstine  said  to  David,  Come  to  me,  and  I  will  give 
thy  flesh  unto  the  fowls  of  the  air,  and  to  the  beasts  of 

45.  the  field.  Then  said  David  to  the  Phihstine,  Thou 
comest  to  me  with  a  sword,  and  with  a  spear,  and  with 
a  javeHn:  but  I  come  to  thee  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
of  hosts,  the  God  of  the  armies  of  Israel,  which  thou 

46.  hast  defied.  This  day  will  the  Lord  deliver  thee  into 
mine  hand;  and  I  will  smite  thee,  and  take  thine  head 
from  off  thee;  and  I  will  give  ^  the  carcases  of  the  host 


G.  adds  thy  carcass  and. 


anticipating  v.  48;  moreover  the  shield-bearer  could  hardly  have  been 
present  at  the  actual  combat.  The  whole  section  41-47  is  suspicious: 
see  above.  The  giant  felt  affronted  because  he  was  met  by  a  youth 
with  a  staff  instead  of  one  of  the  mightest  of  Saul's  warriors. 

43.  Staves  is  a  textual  error,  for  David  carried  but  a  single  club, 
V.  40.  By  his  gods.  Swearing  by  a  god  added  solemnity  to  the  oath. 
The  cursing  was  not  a  mere  indulgence  in  profanity,  but  the  free 
use  of  imprecations. 

44.  This  verse  is  regarded  as  a  duplicate  of  v.  43  which  seems  to 
afford  sufficient  for  the  Philistine  to  say.  David's  threat  in  v.  47  is 
weak  as  a  mere  repetition  of  his  antagonist's. 

45.  Sword  was  not  mentioned  in  the  description  of  Goliath's  out- 
fit, vs.  4-7,  probably  because  it  was  not  of  abnormal  size.  Javelin 
here  appears  to  be  an  offensive  weapon,  c/.  v.  6.  In  the  name.  David 
feels  divinely  commissioned  to  remove  the  stigma  placed  upon  Israel 
and  so  upon  God. 

46.  David's  threat  includes  not  only  the  champion,  but  the  whole 
Philistine  army.  There  is  no  indication  that  he  felt  bound  to  a 
single  combat  on  Goliath's  terms,  v.  9.    A  God  in  Israel  is  not  accu- 

148 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


of  the  Philistines  this  day  unto  the  fowls  of  the  air, 
and  to  the  wild  beasts  of  the  earth;  that  all  the  earth 

47.  may  know  that  there  is  a  God  in  Israel:  and  that  all 
this  assembly  may  know  that  the  Lord  saveth  not 
with  sword  and  spear:  for  the  battle  is  the  Lord's, 

48.  and  he  will  give  you  into  our  hand.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  the  Pliilistine  arose,  and  came  and  drew 
nigh  to  meet  David,  that  David  hastened,  and  ran 

49.  toward  the  army  to  meet  the  PhiUstine.  And  David 
put  his  hand  in  his  bag,  and  took  thence  a  stone,  and 
slang  it,  and  smote  the  Philistine  in  his  forehead;  and 
the  stone  sank  into  his  forehead,  and  he  fell  upon  his 

50.  face  to  the  earth.  So  David  prevailed  over  the 
Phihstine  with  a  sling  and  with  a  stone,  and  smote  the 
Philistine,  and  slew  him;  but  there  was  no  sword  in 

51.  the  hand  of  David.    Then  David  ran,  and  stood  over 

rate,  though  some  emend  the  text  to  get  this  faulty  rendering;  we 
should  translate:  that  Israel  has  a  God. 

47.  This  assembly  apparently  means  Israel  as  contrasted  with 
all  the  earth,  v.  46,  i.  e.,  all  other  nations.  The  word  used  for  assembly 
is  of  late  origin. 

48.  The  story  is  resumed  from  v.  40.  Arose  does  not  imply  that 
Goliath  had  been  sitting.  The  Hebrew  uses  the  word  to  mark  the 
beginning  of  an  action  without  reference  to  posture.  Toward  the 
army  is  difficult,  for  evidently  the  army  of  Israel  is  meant.  With 
Budde  it  is  better  to  read  from  tfte  army. 

49.  David's  actions  are  described  minutely  at  the  point  of  supreme 
interest.  Forehead.  G.  amplifies  thus:  the  stone  passed  through 
the  helmet  into  his  forehead.  The  big  bronze  helmet  afforded  no  pro- 
tection against  the  terrific  blow  from  the  stone. 

50.  G.  lacks  this  verse  also.  It  looks  like  a  prosaic  elaboration, 
and  besides  is  not  quite  correct,  for  the  slaying  comes  later.  After 
V.  39  it  would  be  needless  to  say  that  David  had  no  sword. 

51.  The  Philistine  was  not  necessarily  killed  by  the  impact  of  the 
stone.  David  hastened  to  complete  his  victory  before  interference 
from  other  Philistines  was  possible.  Evidently  there  was  no  armor- 
bearer  at  hand.   Fled.    Panic  seized  the  host  when  they  saw  a  Hebrew 

149 


17:52  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


the  Philistine,  and  took  his  sword, ^  and  drew  it  out  of 
the  sheath  thereof,^  and  slew  him,  and  cut  off  his 
head  therewith.    And  when  the  Phihstines  saw  that 

52.  their  champion  was  dead,  they  fled.  And  the  men  of 
Israel  and  of  Judah  arose,  and  shouted,  and  pursued 
the  Philistines,  until  thou  comest  to  Gai,  and  to  the 
gates  of  Ekron.  And  the  wounded  of  the  Philistines 
fell  down  by  the  way  to  Shaaraim,  even  unto  Gath, 

53.  and  unto  Ekron.  And  the  children  of  Israel  returned 
from  chasing  after  the  Philistines,  and  they  spoiled 

54.  their  camp.  And  David  took  the  head  of  the  Philis- 
tine, and  brought  it  to  Jerusalem;  but  he  put  his 


armour  in  his  tent. 


Lacking  in  G^. 


youth  with  a  sling  vanquish  their  famous  warrior.  They  did  not 
offer  to  become  the  subjects  of  Israel  as  they  were  bound  by  the 
Philistine's  agreement. 

52  f.  Pursued.  As  the  Philistines  had  broken  the  compact  for  a 
single  combat,  the  Hebrews  were  free  to  damage  their  foe  as  much 
as  possible.  Gai  means  valley  and  is  not  a  proper  name;  with  G. 
we  should  read  Gath,  an  important  city  of  the  Philistines  hke  Ekron. 
Shaaraim,  according  to  Josh.  15  :  36,  is  a  place  near  Socoh.  But 
we  should  read :  the  wounded  fell  along  the  road  from  Shaaraim  to  Gath 
and  to  Ekron  (so  Smith).  The  whole  course  of  the  pursuit  was  marked 
by  wounded  Phihstines.  The  Hebrews  evidently  assailed  the  enemy 
vigorously,  an  inference  supported  by  chasing,  v.  53,  which  really 
should  be  hotly  pursuing.  Spoiled.  The  Philistines  had  established 
a  permanent  camp,  and  had  fled  so  suddenly  that  rich  booty  was 
left  behind,  which  plunder  the  Hebrews  promptly  appropriated.  An- 
cient wars,  and  perhaps  many  modem  ones,  were  waged  chiefly 
for  plunder. 

54.  As  Jerusalem  was  still  held  by  a  foreign  people,  the  anachron- 
ism is  evident.  In  his  tent  suggests  a  relation  to  16  :  14-23  according 
to  which  David  would  be  with  the  army,  and  an  important  figure 
there.  The  sword  of  the  Philistine  was  later  reported  to  be  at  the 
temple  in  Nob,  21  :  10;  we  do  not  hear  of  the  other  armor  again. 

150 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  i8:2 


55.  And  when  Saul  saw  David  go  forth  against  the  Philis- 
tine, he  said  unto  Abner,  the  captain  of  the  host, 
Abner,  whose  son  is  this  youth?    And  Abner  said,  As 

56.  thy  soul  liveth,  O  king,  I  cannot  tell.  And  the  king 
said,  Inquire  thou  whose  son  the  stripling  is.    And  as 

57.  David  returned  from  the  slaughter  of  the  Philistine, 
Abner  took  him,  and  brought  him  before  Saul  with 

58.  the  head  of  the  PhiHstine  in  his  hand.  And  Saul  said 
to  him.  Whose  son  art  thou,  thou  young  man?  And 
David  answered,  I  am  the  son  of  thy  servant  Jesse  the 
Beth-lehemite. 

18.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  he  had  made  an  end  of 

speaking  unto  Saul,  that  the  soul  of  Jonathan  was 

knit  with  the  soul  of  David,  and  Jonathan  loved  him 

2.  as  his  own  soul.    And  Saul  took  him  that  day,  and 

would  let  him  go  no  more  home  to  his  father's  house. 


David  is  attached  to  Saul's  court,  17  :  55-18  :  5.  This  section  is 
lacking  in  G.  and  belongs  to  the  same  strand  as  chs.  12-31. 

55  f.  The  story  reverts  now  to  the  point  of  David's  advance  to  meet 
the  Philistine,  v.  48.  Whose  son  now  is  the  boy?  is  the  correct  ren- 
dering. In  harmony  with  this  narrative,  but  contrary  to  16  :  14-23, 
Saul,  and  for  that  matter  Abner  too,  do  not  know  who  David  is. 
I  cannot  tell.  A  Hteral  rendering,  I  do  not  know,  is  better.  Strip- 
ling or  youth.  The  word  means  a  young  man  just  attaining  mar- 
riageable age. 

18  :  I.  End  of  speaking.  So  far  as  our  text  goes  the  conversation 
consisted  merely  of  a  brief  question  and  a  terse  reply.  It  would  be 
more  natural  to  join  together  17  :  58  and  18  :  2,  5,  connecting  the 
whole  of  Saul's  dealings  with  David,  after  which  the  story  of  Jona- 
than's love  would  fit  in  well.  It  is  better  to  render:  the  life  of  Jonathan 
was  hound  up  with  the  life  of  David.  The  friendship  established  here 
was  faithfully  kept  by  both  parties.  After  Jonathan's  death  David 
pays  a  fine  tribute  to  his  friend,  2  Sam.  i  :  19-27. 

2.  Corresponding  to  16  :  22,  David  is  permanently  attached  to 
the  king's  court,  the  fuller  details  of  his  duties  being  told  in 
V.  5- 

151 


l8:3  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


3.  Then  Jonathan  and  David  made  a  covenant,  because 

4.  he  loved  him  as  his  own  soul.  And  Jonathan  stripped 
himself  of  the  robe  that  was  upon  him,  and  gave  it  to 
David,  and  his  apparel,  even  to  his  sword,  and  to  his 

5.    bow,  and  to  his  girdle. 

3.  The  Third  Stage:  Vain  Efforts  to  Destroy  David,  18:5- 
28  :2 

And  David  went  out  ^  whithersoever  Saul  sent  him, 
and  behaved  himself  wisely:  ^  and  Saul  set  him  over 
the  men  of  war,  and  it  was  good  in  the  sight  of  all 
the  people,  and  also  in  the  sight  of  Saul's  servants. 
6.  And  it  came  to  pass  as  they  came,  when  David  re- 

1  Or,  in  whatever  Saul  sent  him  he  succeeded. 

3.  This  verse  should  follow  directly  on  v.  i.  The  covenant  was  an 
agreement,  the  terms  of  which  we  do  not  know,  but  the  inference 
from  V.  I,  and  later  passages,  is  that  the  two  made  their  interests 
common.  The  reading,  however,  should  be,  Jonathan  made  a  cove- 
nant with  David. 

4.  Jonathan  bestows  the  highest  honor  on  David  by  putting  on 
him  the  complete  outfit  of  a  prince,  including  his  military  accoutre- 
ments. David  had  been  made  a  member  of  the  court;  and  doubtless 
had  been  poorly  enough  clothed. 

5.  This  verse  is  an  editorial  gloss  to  pave  the  way  for  vs.  6  f.  Da- 
vid's position  is  greater  than  in  16  :  23.  At  first  he  was  in  charge  of 
small  expeditions,  and  later  on  account  of  his  unfailing  success,  Saul 
made  him  the  head  of  the  army,  thus  replacing  Abner,  17  :  55.  The 
exaltation  of  David  was  approved  by  the  people  at  large  and  by  the 
men  of  war  who  found  him  an  effective  leader. 

(i)  SauVs  attempts  to  kill  David  frustrated,  and  result  in  David's 
flight,   18  :  6-21  :  15 

18  :  6-30.  Of  the  various  stories  recorded  here,  vs.  18  :  6-21;  15  :  10- 
12  have  a  parallel  in  19  :  9  f.  The  section  is  lacking  in  G.  (except  v. 
1 2a,  and  must  be  looked  upon  as  a  duplicate,  as  the  incident  is  out  of 
place  here.  Similarly  vs.  17-19  (also  lacking  in  G.)  are  parallel  to  vs. 
20-27.  The  incident  is  to  be  connected  with  the  secondary  source 
in  ch.  17  in  which  the  king's  daughter  was  promised  to  the  one  who 

152 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  l8:iO 


turned  from  the  slaughter  of  the  Phih'sthie,  tlmt  the 
women  came  out  of  all  the  cities  of  Israel,  singing  and 
dancing,  to  meet  king  Saul,^  with  timbrels,  with  joy, 
7.  and  with  instruments  of  music.  And  the  women  sang 
one  to  another  in  their  play,  and  said, 

g  Saul  hath  slain  his  thousands, 

And  David  his  ten  thousands. 

And  Saul  was  very  wroth,  and  this  saying  displeased 
him;  and  he  said.  They  have  ascribed  unto  David  ten 
thousands,  and  to  me  they  have  ascribed  but  thou- 
sands: and  what  can  he  have  more  but  the  kingdom? 
9.  And  Saul  eyed  David  from  that  day  and  forward. 
10.  And  it  came  to  pass  on  the  morrow,  that  an  evil 

1  G.  David. 

slew  the  Philistine.  There  are  certain  modifications  by  the  editor 
in  his  unsuccessful  attempt  to  make  the  section  fit  into  its  present 
place.  There  are  various  other  duplicates  which  add  to  the  evidence 
of  double  sources. 

Saul's  jealousy  is  aroused,  vs.  6-9.  6.  As  they  came  must  be 
omitted  as  a  harmonistic  note,  and  with  G.  we  should  read  David  in- 
stead of  king  Saul.  The  song  was  sung  to  praise  David's  great  feat, 
cf.  Judg.  II  :34. 

7.  One  to  another,  i.  e.,  antiphonally.  In  their  play  conveys  the 
idea  of  making  sport  or  entertaining.  The  rendering  of  the  song  is 
very  doubtful.  The  Heb.  runs  literally  Saul  has  slain  with  his  thou- 
sand, and  David  with  his  myriad.  The  meaning  is  not  clear,  but  it  is 
certain  that  David  is  honored  above  Saul. 

8  f.  Saul's  malady  made  him  morbidly  suspicious,  and  he  seizes 
upon  the  words  praising  David  more  than  himself,  and  he  interprets 
them  to  his  own  discredit.  The  last  clause  is  not  a  question,  but  an 
assertion:  there  is  yet  for  him  only  the  crown.  This  is  lacking  in  G., 
probably  rightly  as  it  anticipates  too  much.  Eyed  occurs  only  here, 
and  is  doubtful,  but  the  idea  is  that  Saul  kept  his  eye  on  David,  i.  e., 
watched  him  suspiciously.    In  v.  29,  we  find  was  enemy. 

The  threat  with  the  spear  vs.  10-12. 

10  f .  G.  lacks  this  passage,  which  is  a  parallel  to  19:9  f .,  where 
Sauls  attempt  on  David's  life  fits  in  better,  after  his  cunning  at- 

153 


l8:il  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


spirit  from  ^  God  came  mightily  upon  Saul,  and  he 
prophesied  in  the  midst  of  the  house:  and  David 
played  with  his  hand,  as  he  did  day  by  day:  and  Saul 

11.  had  his  spear  in  his  hand.  And  Saul  cast  the  spear; 
for  he  said,  I  will  smite  David  even  to  the  wall.     And 

12.  David  avoided  out  of  his  presence  twice.  And  Saul 
was  afraid  of  David,  because  the  Lord  was  with  him, 

13.  and  was  departed  from  Saul.  Therefore  Saul  removed 
him  from  him,  and  made  him  his  captain  over  a 
thousand;  and  he  went  out  and  came  in  before  the 

14.  people.    And  David  behaved  himseK  wisely  in  all  his 


Or  of. 


tempts  to  bring  about  his  destruction  had  failed.  Prophesied  in 
19  :  9  sluing.  The  prophetic  frenzy  was  regarded  as  a  sign  of  mad- 
ness. Here  it  is  wrongly  attributed  to  the  presence  of  an  evil  spirit. 
Cast.  As  Saul  apparently  did  not  hurl  the  spear  as  he  did  in  19  :  10, 
it  is  better  to  emend  with  G. :  Saul  raised  the  spear.  After  this  pre- 
liminary act  the  expression  of  his  intentions  is  in  its  natural  place. 
After  throwing  the  spear,  it  would  be  late  to  say  what  he  intended  to 
do.  Avoided,  i.  e.,  turned  about  or  dodged.  Out  of  his  presence  im- 
plies leaving  the  room;  the  idea  is  out  of  his  way,  so  as  to  avoid  the 
spear.  Twice  indicates  that  Saul  made  two  imsuccessful  attempts 
to  get  David  in  range  of  the  lance. 

12.  Afraid.  If  we  follow  G.  the  cause  of  Saul's  fear  was  David's 
popularity  as  shown  in  the  song  of  the  women.  The  reason  given 
here  is  lacking  in  G.  Departed,  cf.  16  :  14. 

David  is  reduced  in  position,  13-16.  13.  Removed  him  from  with 
him  is  a  literal  rendering  necessary  to  bring  out  the  true  force.  Up 
to  this  time  David  was  Saul's  armor-bearer,  16  :  21,  and  so  closely 
attached  to  his  person.  The  king  degrades  him  from  this  high  ofl5ce 
and  gave  him  a  subordinate  command,  where  supposedly  he  would 
have  no  chance  to  distinguish  himself.  Before  the  people,  as  the 
clause  manifestly  explains  what  David  did  as  commander  of  a 
regiment,  we  might  render  at  the  head  of  the  troops  (similarly  Smith). 

14  f.  Ways  is  rather  specific;  better,  duties  as  leader  of  a  body  of 
soldiers.  Stood  in  awe  is  meant  to  be  stronger  than  afraid,  v.  12. 
Saul's  terror  was  growing  as  David  achieved  one  success  after  an- 
other. 


154 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  18:19 


15.  ways;  and  the  Lord  was  with  him.  And  when  Saul 
saw  that  he  behaved  himself  very  wisely,  he  stood  in 

16.  awe  of  him.  But  all  Israel  and  Judah  loved  David; 
for  he  went  out  and  came  in  before  them. 

17.  And  Saul  said  to  David,  Behold,  my  elder  daughter 
Merab,  her  will  I  give  thee  to  wife:  only  be  thou 
valiant  for  me,  and  fight  the  Lord's  battles.  For 
Saul  said,  Let  not  mine  hand  be  upon  him,  but  let  the 

18.  hand  of  the  Philistines  be  upon  him.  And  David  said 
unto  Saul,  Who  am  I,  and  what  is  my  life,  or  my 
father's  family  in  Israel,  that  I  should  be  son  in  law  to 

19.  the  king?  But  it  came  to  pass  at  the  time  when 
Merab  Saul's  daughter  should  have  been  given  to 

16.  David's  popularity  was  increased  by  the  means  Saul  took 
probably  in  the  hope  that  he  would  fall  in  battle.  This  new  com- 
mand evidently  brought  him  in  the  public  eye  more  than  the  old 
one. 

Saul  breaks  his  promise  to  give  Morab  to  David,  vs.  17-19.  This 
section  is  also  lacking  in  G.  to  the  great  improvement  of  the  narrative. 
It  is  the  sequel  to  17  :  12-31.  If  David  had  once  become  eligible 
to  marry  in  the  king's  family  he  would  not  have  raised  the  obstacles 
as  he  does,  v.  23.  Michal  would  have  been  called  Saul's  youngest 
daughter  in  contrast  to  Merab  the  eldest.  David  would  scarcely 
have  tried  to  earn  Michal  if  Saul  had  tricked  him  in  a  similar  bar- 
gain. 

17.  For  Saul  said,  better  as  bringing  out  the  circumstantial 
clause:  now  Saul  had  said  (to  himself).  My  life  should  be  my  kins- 
folk to  which  my  father's  family  in  Israel  is  an  explanatory  gloss. 
David's  idea  was  that  his  origin  was  too  humble  to  permit  an  alliance 
with  the  family  of  the  king,  then  though  Saul  had  once  been  humble 
too.  It  appears  that  in  spite  of  his  objections  Saul  persisted  in  his 
offer  and  that  David  won  the  victories  demanded  by  Saul.  When 
David  had  thus  won  the  wife  she  was  given  to  another,  for  which  act  G. 
brings  in  as  a  reason  that  she  was  afraid  of  David.  Adriel  the  Meho- 
lathite  appears  in  2  Sam.  21  :  8  as  the  husband  of  Michal,  by  whom 
she  had  borne  five  sons  who  were  put  to  death  by  David.  Meholah 
or  Abel  Meholah,  Judg.  7  :  22,  was  in  the  valley  of  the  Jordan.  It 
was  the  home  of  Elisha  the  prophet,  i  Kings  19  :  16. 


l8:20  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


David,  that  she  was  given  unto  Adriel  the  Meholathite 

20.  to  wife.    And  Michal  Saul's  daughter  loved  David: 

21.  and  they  told  Saul,  and  the  thing  pleased  him.  And 
Saul  said,  I  will  give  him  her,  that  she  may  be  a  snare 
to  him,  and  that  the  hand  of  the  PhiHstines  may  be 
against  him.  Wherefore  Saul  said  to  David,  Thou 
shalt  this  day  be  my  son  in  law  a  second  time.    And 

22.  Saul  commanded  his  servants,  saying,  Commune  with 
David  secretly,  and  say,  Behold,  the  king  hath  delight 
in  thee,  and  all  his  servants  love  thee:  now  therefore 

23.  be  the  king's  son  in  law.  And  Saul's  servants  spake 
those  words  in  the  ears  of  David.  And  David  said, 
Seemeth  it  to  you  a  light  thing  to  be  the  king's  son  in 
law,  seeing  that  I  am  a  poor  man,  and  lightly  es- 

24.  teemed?    And  the  servants  of  Saul  told  him,  saying, 

David  marries  Michal  the  daughter  of  Saul,  vs.  20-29.  20.  Loved 
orfell  in  love  with.  As  Jonathan  had  at  once  been  attracted  to  David, 
so  now  the  king's  daughter  is  won  by  his  attractions.  They  told, 
presumably  the  courtiers  to  whom  Michal's  secret  had  been  revealed. 
Pleased  him  because  he  discerned  the  base  use  to  which  he  would 
put  his  daughter's  affections,  making  it  a  snare  to  entrap  his 
enemy. 

21.  Said  either  to  himself  as  v.  17  or  to  his  informers  who  con- 
ducted the  negotiations  with  David.  The  last  part  of  the  verse  is 
lacking  in  G.  rightly,  for  it  conflicts  with  the  narrative  following. 
A  second  time  is  not  a  correct  rendering,  but  it  is  hard  to  say  what 
is  right.  Literally  we  have  with  two,  perhaps  meaning  with  two 
daughters  and  implying  that  Merab  had  been  given  to  David,  or 
that  he  was  still  working  to  win  her.  The  whole  verse  may  be  edi- 
torial as  v.  25  sufficiently  explains  Saul's  purpose. 

22.  The  king's  pleasure  and  the  courtiers'  love  are  cited  as  a  suffi- 
cient ground  for  the  high  alliance,  but  Saul  does  not  expect  David 
to  accept  such  an  offer,  otherwise  his  plot  would  fail. 

23.  Poor  is  a  strong  word  in  the  original  indicating  very  slender 
means  indeed.  Lightly  esteemed  suggests  obscurity.  David's  fam- 
ily had  not  distinguished  themselves.  From  such  a  source,  how- 
ever, great  kings  may  come. 

156 


THE   FIRST   BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  18:28 


25.  On  this  manner  spake  David.  And  Saul  said,  Thus 
shall  ye  say  to  David,  The  king  desireth  not  any 
dowry,  but  an  hundred  foreskins  of  the  Philistines,  to 
be  avenged  of  the  king's  enemies.    Now  Saul  thought 

26.  to  make  David  fall  by  the  hand  of  the  Philistines.  And 
when  his  servants  told  David  these  words,  it  pleased 
David  well  to  be  the  king's  son  in  law.    And  the  days 

27.  were  not  expired;  and  David  arose  and  went,  he 
and  his  men,  and  slew  of  the  Philistines  two  hundred  ^ 
men;  and  David  brought  their  foreskins,  and  they 
gave  them  in  full  tale  to  the  king,  that  he  might  be  the 
king's  son  in  law.     And  Saul  gave  him  Michal  his 

28.  daughter  to  wife.    And  Saul  saw  and  knew  that  the 

1  G.  owe  hundred. 

25.  Dowry.  The  word  really  means  the  price  paid  for  a  wife,  for 
wives  were  sold  and  the  purchase  money  went  to  the  bride's  father. 
David's  reference  to  his  poverty  meant  that  he  could  not  pay  the 
large  price  necessary  to  secure  a  princess.  Foreskins  were  the  mark 
of  the  Philistines'  inferiority,  c/.  17  :  26.  In  Ps.  118  :  10-12,  circum- 
cise is  used  to  denote  destruction.  Make  David  fall.  It  is  clear  that 
the  Philistines  were  regarded  as  a  desperate  foe  in  that  Saul  felt  sure 
that  David's  attempt  to  procure  a  hundred  dead  bodies  of  Philis- 
tines would  result  in  his  own  death. 

26.  Days  were  not  expired  implies  that  a  time  limit  had  been  set 
in  order  to  increase  the  danger  of  the  undertaking.  In  that  case  it 
would  have  been  referred  to  in  the  negotiations.  On  the  basis  of  the 
omission  in  G.  we  may  regard  the  clause  as  an  interpolation,  or  con- 
nected with  Merab's  marriage.  The  words  would  fit  well  at  the  end 
of  v.  18. 

27.  His  men  would  mean  the  body  of  which  he  had  been  appointed 
commander,  v.  13.  Two  hundred  may  be  an  exaggeration  to  exalt 
David.  It  appears  that  David  exactly  met  the  king's  terms,  for  the 
word  rendered  gave  in  full  tale  means  to  fill,  complete  or  satisfy.  It 
contains  no  hint  of  a  work  of  supererogation.  Saul  gave.  Had  the 
king  dishonorably  withheld  Merab  previously,  he  would  probably 
have  adopted  the  same  tactics  now. 

David's  growing  favor,  vs.  28-30.    The  section  duplicates  vs.  14-16. 

28.  The  Lord  with  David.     Saul  recognized  the  fact  from  the 

157 


Z8:29  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Lord  was  with  David;  and  Michal  Saul's  daughter 

29.  loved  him.  And  Saul  was  yet  the  more  afraid  of 
David;  and  Saul  was  David's  enemy  continually. 

30.  Then  the  princes  of  the  PhiHstines  went  forth:  and  it 
came  to  pass,  as  often  as  they  went  forth,  that  David 
behaved  himself  more  wisely  than  all  the  servants  of 
Saul;  so  that  his  name  was  much  set  by. 

19.  And  Saul  spake  to  Jonathan  his  son,  and  to  all  his 
servants,  that  they  should  slay  David.  But  Jonathan 
2.  Saul's  son  deHghted  much  in  David.  And  Jonathan 
told  David,  saying,  Saul  my  father  seeketh  to  slay 
thee:  now  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  take  heed  to  thyself 
in  the  morning,  and  abide  in  a  ^  secret  place,  and  hide 

1  Or  the. 

wonderful  feat  David  had  performed.  The  last  clause  is  better  as 
G. :  and  all  Israel  loved  him.    Michal's  love  was  related  in  v.  20. 

29  f .  Saul's  fear  was  increased  because  of  the  evidence  of  Jahveh's 
favor,  for  by  this  favor  he  himself  had  become  king.  The  last  half  of 
V.  29  and  V.  30  are  lacking  in  G.;  v.  30  contains  a  general  summary 
of  David's  continued  successes  over  the  Philistines  and  of  his  con- 
sequent increase  in  fame.  The  evidence  in  later  sections  indicates 
that  David  did  not  wage  war  with  this  people.  The  story  of  David 
and  Michal  is  resumed  in  19  :  11. 

Saul  issues  a  decree  that  David  be  slain,  but  is  reconciled  through 
Jonathan's  mediation,  19  :  1-7,  i.  Slay  David.  His  attempt  to 
accomplish  David's  destruction  by  a  plot  having  failed,  God  appar- 
ently protecting  him,  Saul  resolved  to  take  a  surer  means  to  gain  his 
end.  As  the  order  was  general,  we  may  suppose  that  any  one  of  his 
officers  was  directed  to  slay  David  at  the  first  opportunity.  De- 
lighted in  David  is  scarcely  necessary  after  18  :  1-5,  except  as  it 
may  explain  Jonathan's  present  action. 

2.  Morning  presupposes  that  Jonathan's  warning  is  given  in  the 
evening.  David  was  emphatically  cautioned  to  be  on  his  guard 
and  to  remain  concealed  in  the  secret  place,  showing  that  Jonathan 
regarded  the  danger  as  serious.  The  hiding  place  was  evidently 
well  known  to  both,  for  Jonathan  plans  to  lead  Saul  to  the  same 
locality,  v.  3. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


3.  thyself:  and  I  will  go  out  and  stand  beside  my  father 
in  the  field  where  thou  art,  and  I  will  commune  with 
my  father  of  thee;  and  if  I  see  aught,  I  will  tell  thee. 

4.  And  Jonathan  spake  good  of  David  unto  Saul  his 
father,  and  said  unto  him,  Let  not  the  king  sin  against 
his  servant,  against  David;  because  he  hath  not  sinned 
against  thee,  and  because  his  works  have  been  to 

5.  thee-ward  very  good:  for  he  put  his  life  in  his  hand, 
and  smote  the  Philistine,  and  the  Lord  wrought  a 
great  victory  for  all  Israel:  thou  sawest  it,  and  didst 
rejoice:  wherefore  then  wilt  thou  sin  against  innocent 

6.  blood,  to  slay  David  without  a  cause?  And  Saul 
hearkened  unto  the  voice  of  Jonathan:  and  Saul  sware, 
As  the  Lord  hveth,  he  shall  not  be  put  to  death. 

7.  And  Jonathan  called  David,  and  Jonathan  shewed  him 
all  those  things.  And  Jonathan  brought  David  to 
Saul,  and  he  was  in  his  presence,  as  beforetime. 

8.  And  there  was  war  again:  and  David  went  out,  and 

3.  The  narrative  presupposes  the  execution  of  Jonathan's  plan; 
the  morning  had  come;  David  had  retired  to  the  hiding  place  in  the 
wild  land  (the  true  sense  of  "field"  here);  and  Jonathan  imder  some 
pretext  had  led  his  father  close  to  the  spot.  The  appeal  is  first  to 
the  king's  sense  of  justice:  he  should  not  commit  a  wrong  against 
one  who  had  always  been  loyal  to  him. 

5.  The  Philistine  evidently  refers  to  ch.  17,  and  therefore  Jona 
than's  appeal  is  based  on  that  exploit.    Innocent  blood  is  a  com- 
bination first  occurring  in  Deut.    The  cities  of  refuge  were  insti- 
tuted as  a  safeguard  against  the  shedding  of  innocent  blood,  Deut. 
19  :  10. 

7.  Saul's  decree  had  been  countermanded,  v.  6,  and  now,  Saul 
presumably  having  departed,  David  is  called  from  hiding  to  learn 
the  news.  The  story  is  not  very  consistent,  for  the  plan  had  been 
carefully  made  to  have  the  interview  in  David's  hearing.  As  before- 
time,  i.  e.,  David  became  court-musician  and  armor-bearer  again  as 
he  had  been  before  his  degradation,  18  :  13. 

Saul's  attempt  upon   David's   life,   vs.    8-10.   cf.    18  :  10  f.    8. 

159 


19:9  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


fought  with  the  Philistines,  and  slew  them  with  a 

9.  great  slaughter;  and  they  fled  before  him.    And  an  evil 

spirit  from  the  Lord  was  upon  Saul,  as  he  sat  in  his 

house  with  his  spear  in  his  hand;  and  David  played 

10.  with  his  hand.  And  Saul  sought  to  smite  David  even 
to  the  wall  with  the  spear;  but  he  slipped  away  out  of 
Saul's  presence,  and  he  smote  the  spear  into  the  wall: 

11.  and  David  fled,  and  escaped  that  night.  And  Saul 
sent  messengers  unto  David's  house,  to  watch  him, 
and  to  slay  him  in  the  morning:  and  Michal  David's 
wife  told  him,  saying.  If  thou  save  not  thy  life  to-night, 

12.  to-morrow  thou  shalt  be  slain.    So  Michal  let  David 


The  great  success  achieved  by  David  in  the  war,  instead  of  win- 
ning Saul's  favor,  stirred  up  his  jealousy  again,  18  :  8,  and  this 
brought  on  an  attack  of  his  disease.  The  verse  may  be  an  edi- 
torial connecting  link. 

10.  Even  to  the  wall  is  lacking  in  G.  There  would  be  no  point 
in  trying  to  pin  David  to  the  wall.  Slipped  away  is  doubtful,  as 
the  word  means  open  or  separate.  Jumped  or  dodged  would  be  better. 
Saul  hurled  the  spear,  but  as  David  dodged,  it  went  into  the  wall, 
from  which  it  may  have  been  inferred  that  the  king  had  meant  to 
transjSx  him  to  the  wall.  Escaped  or  slipped  away  as  he  went  to  his 
own  home.     That   night  belongs  to  the  next  paragraph. 

Michal  enables  David  to  escape,  vs.  11-17.  11.  It  is  better  to  be- 
gin with  G.:  aiid  it  came  to  pass  that  night.  This  verse  is  now 
usually  connected  directly  with  18  :  27,  so  that  this  took  place  on 
the  first  night  after  the  marriage.  But  David's  home  here  seems 
to  have  a  rather  settled  state  as  if  he  and  Michal  had  lived  there 
for  some  time.  David's  house.  The  possession  of  a  home  of  his 
own  probably  followed  his  marriage.  And  to  slay.  As  rendered 
the  emissaries  of  Saul  were  to  slay  David,  but  that  clearly  was 
not  intended  as  v.  15  shows  that  Saul  meant  to  kill  David 
himself.  Therefore  we  should  omit  a  conjunction  so  that  we  have 
to  guard  him  [against  escape]  that  he  might  slay  him  in  the  morning. 
Saul  had  learned  that  David  had  gone  to  his  house,  and  apparently 
a  friendly  voice  had  warned  Michal. 

12.  Through  the  window,  a  means  of  escape  mentioned  in  Josh.  2  : 
15,  Acts  9  :  25.    Such  a  means  of  exit  was  so  difl&cult  that  the  window 

160 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


down  through  the  window:  and  he  went,  and  fled, 

13.  and  escaped.     And  Michal  took  the  teraphim,  and 
laid  it  in  the  bed,  and  put  a  pillow  of  goats'  hair  at  the 

14.  head  thereof,  and  covered  it  with  the  clothes.    And 
when  Saul  sent  messengers  to  take  David,  she  ^  said, 

15.  He  is  sick.     And  Saul  sent  the  messengers  to  see 
David,  sa3dng,  Bring  him  up  to  me  in  the  bed,  that  I 

16.  may  slay  him.    And  when  the  messengers  came  in, 
behold,  the  teraphim  was  in  the  bed,  with  the  pillow 

17.  of  goats' teV  at  the  head  thereof .    And  Saul  said  unto 

1  Better,  they. 

was  not  guarded.    Michal  shows  her  love  in  a  practical  way,  though 
she  knew  it  would  sorely  displease  the  king. 

13.  Teraphim.  An  idol  or  household  deity  here  evidently  having 
the  shape  and  size  of  a  man,  cf.  on  15  :  23.  Michal  wanted  to  gain 
time,  and  in  case  the  watchman  inspected  the  house,  the  teraphim 
was  made  to  look  like  David.  Pillow  is  hardly  right,  but  the  real 
meaning  is  unknown.  The  sense  is  clear,  however.  The  head  of 
the  teraphim  could  not  pass  for  David's  for  lack  of  hair.  Michal 
put  some  object  made  from  a  goat-skin  at  the  place  where  the  head 
would  be,  and  so  completed  the  disguise. 

14.  Messengers,  evidently  not  the  same  ones  named  in  v.  11;  the 
former  were  to  watch  the  house,  the  latter  to  bring  David  into  Saul's 
presence.  He  is  sick.  Michal  had  doubtless  shown  the  supposed 
invalid  confined  to  his  bed. 

15.  To  see  David  cannot  be  right,  for  the  messengers  had  already 
seen  him,  or  what  was  supposed  to  be  him,  and  their  errand  now  was 
to  seize  him.  Smith  reads:  to  the  house  of  David.  It  is  best  to  trans- 
pose V.  14a  and  V.  15a. 

16.  On  their  former  visit  the  messengers  had  been  satisfied  with 
a  glance  at  the  figure  in  the  bed  and  Michal's  statement.  Their 
orders  now  require  a  nearer  view,  and  the  deception  appears. 

17.  The  messengers  reported  the  trick  to  Saul  and  he  evidently 
sent  for  his  daughter  to  reprove  her  for  shielding  his  enemy.  Why 
shotild  I  kill  thee  is  hardly  as  strong  as  the  original,  which  may  be 
rendered  lest  I  kill  thee.  Michal  feared  to  tell  Saul  that  she  had  dis- 
covered his  evil  design,  probably  through  a  disaffected  messenger, 
and  had  planned  David's  escape.  The  story  she  made  up  was  self- 
evidently  false,  but  Saul  was  not  very  acute. 

i6i 


19:18  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Michal,  Why  hast  thou  deceived  me  thus,  and  let 
mine  enemy  go,  that  he  is  escaped?  And  Michal 
answered  Saul,  He  said  imto  me,  Let  me  go;  why 
should  I  kill  thee? 

18.  Now  David  fled,  and  escaped,  and  came  to  Samuel  to 
Ramah,  and  told  him  all  that  Saul  had  done  to  him. 

19.  And  he  and  Samuel  went  and  dwelt  in  Naioth.  And 
it  was  told  Saul,  saying,  Behold,  David  is  at  Naioth 

20.  in  Ramah.  And  Saul  sent  messengers  to  take  David: 
and  when  they  saw  the  company  of  the  prophets 
prophesying,  and  Samuel  standing  as  head  over  them, 
the  spirit  of  God  came  upon  the  messengers  of  Saul, 

21.  and  they  also  prophesied.  And  when  it  was  told  Saul, 
he  sent  other  messengers,  and  they  also  prophesied. 
And  Saul  sent  messengers  again  the  third  time,  and 

22.  they  also  prophesied.    Then  went  he  also  to  Ramah, 

David  finds  asylum  with  Samuel  at  Ramah,  vs.  18-24  cf.  Introd. 
18  f.  To  Samuel.  The  intimation  is  that  David  had  fled  to  Samuel 
for  protection,  showing  a  relation  of  this  story  to  16  : 1-13.  Naioth 
is  doubtful.  My  guess  from  its  use  in  this  passage  is  that  it  is  the 
name  of  some  particular  place  in  Ramah;  G.  adds  in  Ramah,  as 
we  have  in  v.  19.  Told  Saixl.  This  spy  system  was  evidently  in 
active  operation. 

20.  Samuel  standing  as  head  over  them  is  a  parenthetical  clause 
and  not  a  part  of  the  explanation  of  the  contagion  of  the  prophetic 
frenzy.  The  messengers  were  unable  to  seize  David  because  they 
were  rendered  powerless  by  the  ecstatic  state.  Smith  calls  this 
David's  "miraculous  protection";  there  is  certainly  nothing  mirac- 
ulous about  it,  although  the  frenzy  was  attributed  to  the  presence 
of  the  spirit  of  God.  But  the  same  spirit  produced  great  physical 
strength. 

21.  We  have  to  assume  either  that  the  messengers  returned  and 
reported  the  condition  of  affairs,  or  that  they  were  detained  in  Ramah, 
by  exhaustion  after  their  frenzy,  the  tidings  reaching  Saul  by  others. 

22.  In  G.  the  verse  begins  very  aptly:  and  Saul  was  moved  with 
anger,  because  his  plans  were  thwarted,  and  he  was  again  denied 
the  victim  he  sought.    First  the  general  locahty  is  named  Ramah, 

162 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


and  came  to  the  great  well  that  is  in  Secu:  and  he 
asked  and  said,  Where  are  Samuel  and  David?    And 

23.  one  said,  Behold,  they  be  at  Naioth  in  Ramah.  And 
he  went  thither  to  Naioth  in  Ramah:  and  the  spirit  of 
God  came  upon  him  also,  and  he  went  on,  and  proph- 

24.  esied,  until  he  came  to  Naioth  in  Ramah.  And  he  also 
stripped  off  his  clothes,  and  he  also  prophesied  before 
Samuel,  and  lay  down  naked  all  that  day  and  all  that 
night.  Wherefore  they  say,  Is  Saul  also  among  the 
prophets? 

20.  And  David  fled  from  Naioth  in  Ramah,  and  came  and 

and  then  the  particular  place  where  Saul  made  his  inquiries,  to  the 
great  well  that  is  in  Secu,  for  which  G.  gives  a  more  intelligible 
reading :  to  the  pit  of  the  threshing-floor  on  the  hare  hill.  Saul's  informers 
told  him  no  more  than  he  had  known  already,  v.  19. 

23  f.  To  make  sense  it  is  necessary  to  omit  the  first  Naioth  in 
Ramah,  for  what  Saul  did  on  the  way  should  precede  the  announce- 
ment of  his  arrival.  The  description  of  the  prophetic  frenzy  is  not 
exaggerated.  In  the  wild  dances,  Saul  stripped  off  his  outer  and 
heavy  robe,  which  would  impede  his  action.  Naked  is  not  to  be 
taken  Hterally;  it  describes  a  condition  in  which  one  is  only  clad  in 
the  short  tunic,  cf.  Is.  20  :  2.  The  terrific  strain  of  the  frenzy  is 
shown  from  the  duration  of  the  collapse.  There  were  two  versions 
of  the  origm  of  this  proverb  {cf.  also  10  :  10  f.),  as  there  are  about 
the  origin  of  many  proverbs.  The  scene  would  not  beveiy  strange 
in  the  case  of  the  mad  king,  nor  would  it  be  remarkable  in  view  of  the 
fact  that  his  messengers  had  also  caught  the  frenzy.  It  is  otherwise 
in    10  :  10  f. 

Ch.  20  is  peculiarly  diflficult.  In  this  story  David  is  expected  to 
attend  the  feast  at  Saul's  table,  and  Jonathan  knows  of  no  hostihty 
towards  his  friend,  a  situation  hard  to  fit  in  after  Saul's  repeated 
efforts  to  slay  David.  Moreover  the  story  is  in  part  badly  told. 
It  begins  smoothly,  vs.  1-8,  and  ends  clearly,  vs.  20-42,  but  the  inter- 
mediate part  is  confusing.  In  one  place  David  proposes  the  test, 
vs.  5-7,  in  another  place  Jonathan  puts  the  matter  as  a  plan  of  his 
own,  vs.  18  f.  The  plain  reference  to  David's  future  glory  in  the 
perplexing  section,  vs.  9-19,  shows  a  late  hand.  It  is  impossible 
to  see  any  reason  why  Jonathan  and  David  should  retire  "to  the 
field"  in  the  midst  of  their  conversation.    It  is  probably  unnecessary 

163 


20 :  2  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


said  before  Jonathan,  What  have  I  done?  what  is 
mine  iniquity?  and  what  is  my  sin  before  thy  father, 

2.  that  he  seeketh  my  Ufe?  And  he  said  unto  him,  God 
forbid;  thou  shalt  not  die:  behold,  my  father  doeth 
nothing  either  great  or  small,  but  that  he  discloseth 
it  unto  me:  and  why  should  my  father  hide  this  thing 

3.  from  me?  it  is  not  so.  And  David  sware  moreover,  and 
said.  Thy  father  knoweth  well  that  I  have  found  grace 
in  thine  eyes;  and  he  saith,  Let  not  Jonathan  know 
this,  lest  he  be  grieved:  but  truly  as  the  Lord  liveth, 
and  as  thy  soul  Uveth,  there  is  but  a  step  between 

4.  me  and  death.  Then  said  Jonathan  unto  David, 
Whatsoever  thy  soul  desireth,  I  will  even  do  it  for 

to  go  further  than  to  hold  that  vs.  11-17  are  a  late  addition,  the 
insertion  of  which  led  to  other  slight  modifications.  On  the  historical 
problem,  cf.  Introduction. 

Jonathan  devises  a  plan  to  ascertain  Saul's  attitude  towards  David, 
20  :  i-24a.  I.  Fled  presumably  while  Saul  was  helpless  as  the  result 
of  his  prophetic  frenzy.  The  passage  is  evidently  redactional  to  con- 
nect passages  originally  quite  unrelated.  We  should  transpose  with  G. 
and  read:  came  into  the  presence  of  Jonathan  and  said. 

2.  It  is  not  so  is  a  very  emphatic  assertion  like  "  there  is  nothing 
in  it."  Jonathan  flatly  denies  any  hostile  purpose  on  Saul's  part  to- 
wards David,  on  the  ground  that  he  has  never  heard  of  it,  and  that 
Saul  took  no  steps  even  in  small  matters  without  revealing  his  inten- 
tions (Hterally  tmcovering  his  ear)  to  him.  Plainly  this  story  is  quite 
independent  of  19  :  i  f. 

3  f.  Sware  moreover,  really  swear  again.  There  seems  to  be  no 
place  here  for  taking  an  oath  and  it  is  better  to  follow  G.,  and  David 
said  hi  reply.  Lest  he  be  grieved.  G.  gives  a  better  reason  for  Saul's 
keeping  his  son  in  the  dark:  lest  he  tell  David,  and  so  thwart  the  king's 
plans.  Thy  soul  is  often  no  more  than  an  emphatic  pronoun,  and 
we  should  render  as  thou  livest.  The  same  rule  applies  to  thy  soiil  de- 
sireth, the  verb  coming  from  G.  Here  the  Hebrew  text  is  good: 
whatever  thou  sayest  I  will  do  for  thee.  Jonathan  gives  up  protesting 
his  father's  innocence.  He  realizes  that  his  friend  has  come  to  him 
to  secure  his  aid,  and  now  asserts  his  readiness  to  comply  with  any 
request  that  David  should  make. 

164 


THE   FIRST   BOOK   OF   SAMUEL  20 : 

5.  thee.  And  David  said  unto  Jonathan,  Behold,  to- 
morrow is  the  new  moon,  and  I  should  not  fail  to  sit  ^ 
with  the  king  ^  at  meat:  but  let  me  go,  that  I  may  hide 
myself  in  the  field  unto  ^  the  third  day  ^  at  even. 

6.  If  thy  father  miss  me  at  all,  then  say,  David  earnestly 
asked  leave  of  me  that  he  might  run  to  Beth-lehem  his 
city:  for  it  is  the  yearly  sacrifice  there  for  all  the  family. 

7.  If  he  say  thus.  It  is  well;  thy  servant  shall  have  peace: 
but  if  he  be  wroth,  then  know  that  evil  is  determined 

1  Omit  G. 

5.  David  now  unfolds  his  plan  to  ascertain  Saul's  attitude,  and  it 
would  appear  that  David  himself  is  ignorant  on  that  point.  The 
real  aim  of  David's  plea  may  be  to  secure  permission  to  absent  him- 
self from  the  feast,  knowing  how  dangerous  it  would  be  for  him  to 
come  into  the  presence  of  the  king.  New  moon  was  an  ancient  festi- 
val and  it  is  observed  scrupulously  by  the  king.  The  only  rite  indi- 
cated here  is  the  feasting.  I  should  not  fail  to  sit.  Driver  has 
shown  that  it  was  David's  custom  to  sit  at  the  royal  table  every  day. 
Therefore  he  follows  G.  in  which  David  says:  /  will  not  sit  to  eat  with 
the  king.  The  test  is  to  see  how  the  king  will  take  David's  absence. 
The  field  means  the  wild  lands.  Third  day  at  even  is  hardly  to  be 
drawn  from  the  text.  Third  is  an  interpolation  because  David  was 
obliged  to  hide  till  the  third  day,  though  that  time  could  not  be  an- 
ticipated, and  we  should  have  here  simply  until  evening.  David  natu- 
rally expected  Saul's  attitude  to  show  itself  the  moment  his  absence 
was  noted. 

6.  Miss  me.  In  a  company  of  four,  one  would  surely  be  missed. 
The  word  means  observe,  and  David's  idea  is:  if  thy  father  observe  my 
absence,  i.  e.,  takes  any  notice  of  it,  as  he  did  only  on  its  repetition  on 
the  second  day.  On  the  first  day  the  king  missed  David  and  specu- 
lated to  himself  on  David's  absence,  but  as  he  made  no  comment, 
Jonathan  was  silent.  Yearly  sacrifice.  This  is  precisely  the  same 
sort  of  festival  that  was  kept  by  Elkanah,  1:3,2:  19. 

7.  This  test  is  ahnost  Hke  a  sign,  though  it  would  be  a  natural  as- 
sumption that  if  Saul  approved  of  Jonathan's  act,  it  would  indicate 
a  favorable  attitude  towards  David.  If  he  be  wroth.  G.  has  here  as 
\.  10  if  he  answer  thee  roughly.  Evil  is  determined  by  him  is  not  quite 
exact.  The  phrase  is:  evil  from  him  is  complete,  i.  e.,  the  evidence  that 
harm  will  come  from  him  is  sure.  The  conception  of  the  sign  is  clear 
from  the  expressions  used. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


8.  by  him.  Therefore  deal  kindly  with  thy  servant;  for 
thou  hast  brought  thy  servant  into  a  covenant  of  the 
Lord  with  thee:  but  if  there  be  in  me  iniquity,  slay 
me  thyself;  for  why  shouldest  thou  bring  me  to  thy 

9.  father?  And  Jonathan  said,  Far  be  it  from  thee:  for 
if  I  should  at  all  know  that  evil  were  determined  by 
my  father  to  come  upon  thee,  then  would  not  I  tell  it 

10.  thee?    Then  said  David  to  Jonathan,  Who  shall  tell 

8.  Covenant  of  the  Lord  is  an  agreement  which  Jahveh  is  called 
upon  to  witness,  and  therefore  peculiarly  binding.  In  18  :  3  we  learn 
of  a  covenant,  but  it  is  not  there  called  a  covenant  of  Jahveh.  Cf. 
also  23  :  18.  Iniquity.  David  like  Job  stands  upon  his  innocence, 
a  point  important  to  be  noted.  He  asks  Jonathan  to  be  his  execu- 
tioner if  he  has  committed  a  capital  offense.  If  David  is  brought 
into  Saul's  presence,  he  will  be  slain  without  being  guilty  of  crime. 
The  question  must  mean  that  unless  Jonathan  gives  him  leave,  he 
will  have  to  appear  before  Saul,  and  so  in  effect  Jonathan  will  bring 
him  there.    The  situation  is  of  course  quite  inconsistent  with  c.  19. 

9.  Scholars  are  divided  as  to  the  meaning  and  interpretation  of  this 
difficult  verse,  I  think  we  should  emend  slightly  and  render:  and  J. 
said,  far  he  it  from  me  that  I  should  knoiv  that  evil  from  my  father  was 
determined  against  thee,  and  did  not  let  thee  know  it.  In  answer  to 
David's  plea  that  Jonathan  force  him  not  into  the  king's  presence, 
Jonathan  asserts  his  readiness  to  take  the  grave  step  of  informing 
David  and  so  interfering  with  the  king's  plan.  That  point  settled, 
the  next  step  is  to  agree  on  a  means  of  notifying  David  of  the  result 
of  the  test. 

10.  If  perchance  is  based  partly  on  G.  and  is  usually  accepted. 
But  while  the  text  is  thus  made  easy,  there  is  another  difficulty,  for 
no  provision  is  made  in  case  Saul  answers  Jonathan  gently.  Budde 
says  that  in  that  case  Jonathan  could  bring  his  own  message,  but 
as  a  matter  of  fact  the  sequel  shows  that  Jonathan's  plan  carefully 
provided  for  a  cryptic  signal  in  both  cases.  In  the  first  place  the  text 
has:  who  shall  tell  me  or  what  thy  father  answers  thee  roughly?  Emen- 
dation is  obviously  vital,  but  it  should  be  thorough,  and  must  meet 
the  conditions.  The  simplest  is  to  drop  two  words,  and  we  have: 
who  shall  tell  me  what  thy  father  answers  thee?  But  it  is  difficult  to  see 
how  or  and  roughly  crept  in  to  destroy  the  sense,  and  a  more  sweeping 
supposition  may  be  justified,  as:  who  shall  tell  me  if  what  thy  father 
answers  thee  is  good  or  rough?  Vs.  i  i-i  7  interrupts  the  story,  for  Jona- 
than's answer  to  David's  question  is  found  in  vs.  18  ff.  It  is  impossible 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  2o:iS 


me  if  perchance   thy   father  answer   thee   roughly? 

11.  And  Jonathan  said  unto  David,  Come  and  let  us  go 
out  into  the  field.  And  they  went  out  both  of  them 
into  the  field. 

12.  And  Jonathan  said  unto  David,  The  Lord,  the  God  of 
Israel,  be  witness;  when  I  have  sounded  my  father 
about  this  time  to-morrow,  or  the  third  day,  behold, 
if  there  be  good  toward  David,  shall  I  not  then  send 

13.  unto  thee,  and  disclose  it  unto  thee?  The  Lord  do  so 
to  Jonathan,  and  more  also,  should  it  please  my  father 
to  do  thee  evil,  if  I  disclose  it  not  unto  thee,  and  send 
thee  away,  that  thou  mayest  go  in  peace:  and  the 
Lord  be  with  thee,  as  he  hath  been  with  my  father. 

14.  And  thou  shalt  not  only  while  yet  I  live  shew  me  the 

15.  kindness  of  the  Lord,  that  I  die  not:  but  also  thou 

to  see  any  reason  for  the  adjournment  to  the  wild  country,  and  the 
references  to  David's  greatness  makes  the  passage  suspicious.  In 
many  places  the  text  is  corrupt  or  so  difficult  it  is  hard  to  understand. 
Even  so  the  passage  is  only  a  repetition  of  Jonathan's  assertion  that 
he  would  not  withhold  information  from  David. 

12.  This  verse  is  corrupt  and  difficult,  but  is  clearer  in  G.:  and  J. 
said  to  D.,  Jahveh  the  God  of  Israel  knows  that  I  will  sound  my  father 
.  .  .  and  behold,  if  there  is  good  concerning  David,  I  will  send  thee  word 
to  the  field. 

13.  A  more  solemn  affirmation  is  now  made  because  it  would  be 
both  more  important  and  more  difficult  to  convey  the  tidings  if  Saul 
were  hostile.  Jahveh  be  with  thee  as  he  was  with  my  father  points 
to  David's  enthronization.     The  verse  repeats  v.  9. 

14.  While  yet  I  live  is  a  suspicious  effort  to  avoid  a  plain  reference 
to  David's  kingdom.  We  should  render,  if  I  am  still  alive,  i.  e.,  when 
thou  dost  become  king.  That  I  die  not,  should  read,  hut  if  I  am  dead, 
and  connects  with  the  following  demand  that  David  should  spare 
the  family  of  Jonathan.  The  whole  thing  seems  to  depend  upon  the 
actual  treatment  of  the  family  of  Jonathan  by  David. 

15  f.  To  get  the  true  sense  we  must  emend  freely  with  the  aid  of 
G.,  the  result  being:  when  Jahveh  cuts  off  the  enemies  of  David,  each 
one  from  the  face  of  the  ground,  if  he  [David]  shall  cut  off  Jonathan  with 

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shalt  not  cut  ofif  thy  kindness  from  my  house  for  ever: 
no,  not  when  the  Lord  hath  cut  off  the  enemies  of 

1 6.  David  every  one  from  the  face  of  the  earth.  So 
Jonathan  made  a  covenant  with  the  house  of  David, 
saying,  And  the  Lord  shall  require  it  at  the  hand  of 

17.  David's  enemies.  And  Jonathan  caused  David  to 
swear  again,  for  the  love  that  he  had  to  him:  for  he 

18.  loved  him  as  he  loved  his  own  soul.  Then  Jonathan 
said  unto  him,  To-morrow  is  the  new  moon:  and  thou 

19.  shalt  be  missed,  because  thy  seat  will  be  empty.  And 
when  thou  hast  stayed  three  days,  thou  shalt  go  down 
quickly,  and  come  to  the  place  where  thou  didst  hide 
thyself  when  the  business  was  in  hand,  and  shalt  re- 

20.  main  by  the  stone  Ezel.     And  I  will  shoot  three 

the  house  of  Saul,  then  Jahveh  will  require  it  at  the  hand  of  David.  The 
enemies  of  David  are  those  who  stand  in  the  way  of  his  reaching  the 
throne.  Jonathan  assumes  that  David  will  follow  the  usual  course  in  a 
revolution  and  exterminate  the  whole  house  of  his  predecessor.  This 
stipulation  is  that  if  he  lives,  David  shall  spare  his  life,  and  that  if  he 
is  dead,  David  shall  spare  his  family. 

17.  The  oath  here  makes  any  covenant  in  v.  16  superfluous.  Jona- 
than exacts  another  oath  of  David  to  keep  the  terms  he  has  just  pro- 
posed. It  may  be  that  G.  is  right  in  making  Jonathan  swear  to 
David,  a  situation  more  in  harmony  with  the  motive  of  Jonathan's 
great  love.  Jonathan  would  swear  to  aid  David  in  keeping  out  of  the 
toils  of  Saul. 

18  f.  Jonathan  proceeds  now  to  answer  David's  question  of  v.  10, 
but  speaks  as  if  he  were  proposing  the  plan  already  made  by  David. 
The  rendering  of  v.  19  is  very  uncertain,  and  there  is  doubt  about 
the  text.  On  the  whole  it  seems  possible  to  render:  thou  shalt  go  down 
for  the  full  three  days,  i.  e.,  to  Bethlehem,  so  that  this  visit  to  his 
family  was  not  a  mere  pretext,  then  David  was  to  go  into  the  hiding 
place  agreed  upon.  When  the  business  was  in  hand  is  really  on  the 
day  of  the  deed,  an  occurrence  well  known  to  Jonathan  and  David, 
but  of  which  we  are  entirely  ignorant.  The  stone  Ezel  marks  the  ex- 
act locality  more  definitely.  It  is  better,  however,  to  read  with  G.: 
by  yonder  mound. 

20.  Three  arrows.  As  a  matter  of  fact  Jonathan  shot  but  one, 
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arrows  on  the  side  thereof,  as  though  I  shot  at  a 

21.  mark.  And,  behold,  I  will  send  the  lad,  saying,  Go, 
find  the  arrows.^  If  I  say  unto  the  lad.  Behold,  the 
arrows  ^  are  on  this  side  of  thee:  take  them,  and  come; 
for  there  is  peace  to  thee  and  no  hurt,  as  the  Lord 

22.  liveth.  But  if  I  say  thus  unto  the  boy,  Behold,  the 
arrows  ^  are  beyond  thee:  go  thy  way;  for  the  Lord 

23.  hath  sent  thee  away.  And  as  touching  the  matter 
which  thou  and  I  have  spoken  of,  behold,  the  Lord  is 
between  thee  and  me  for  ever. 

24.  So  David  hid  himself  in  the  field:  and  when  the  new 

'  G.  Arrow. 

and  the  whole  plan  involves  the  use  of  but  a  single  arrow.  We  should 
probably  read:  on  the  third  day  I  will  shoot  an  arrow.  The  pretense 
of  shooting  at  a  target  was  of  course  a  part  of  the  secret  plan  to 
avoid  suspicion  of  David's  hiding  place. 

21.  The  lad  is  not  mentioned  before,  yet  is  a  natural  accompani- 
ment of  one  practicing  archery.  We  should  read  send  the  lad  to  find 
the  arrow.  Take  them  is  addressed  to  David  as  our  text  stands, 
but  that  cannot  be  right,  for  David  would  not  be  expected  to  re- 
trieve the  arrows.  The  words  must  be  addressed  to  the  servant,  who 
would  be  sent  a  distance  away,  so  as  to  see  where  the  arrow  fell; 
making  a  necessary  correction  we  get:  the  arrow  is  this  side  of  thee, 
arise  and  come.  Jonathan  would  shoot  the  arrow  short,  and  then  his 
words  would  mean  to  David  that  it  was  safe  for  him  to  come  back. 
In  that  case,  though,  aU  this  elaborate  precaution  would  not  be 
necessary. 

22.  The  sign  of  Saul's  hostility  was  the  shooting  of  an  arrow 
beyond  the  boy.  The  Lord  hath  sent,  by  giving  him  timely  warning, 
and  by  absolving  him  of  any  further  obedience  to  Saul's  court. 

23.  The  matter  is  the  agreement  just  reached.  It  is  a  question 
of  life  and  death,  and  so  a  divine  obligation  is  added  to  make  it 
binding  and  impressive.  With  G.  it  is  necessary  to  read:  Jahveh 
is  witness  between  thee  and  me. 

Jonathan  discovers  Saul's  evil  intentions  concerning  David,  vs.  24- 
34.  24.  The  new  moon  was  come,  on  the  day  after  the  agreement 
was  made  between  Jonathan  and  David.  Sat  down,  etc.,  or  better 
with  G.  came  to  the  table  to  eat,  cf.  v.  29.  The  king's  sitting  down 
comes  in  v.  25. 

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20125  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


moon  was  come,  the  king  sat  him  down  to  eat  meat. 

25.  And  the  king  sat  upon  his  seat,  as  at  other  times,  even 
upon  the  seat  by  the  wall;  and  Jonathan  stood  up,  and 
Abner  sat  by  Saul's  side:  but  David's  place  was 

26.  empty.  Nevertheless  Saul  spake  not  any  thing  that 
day:  for  he  thought,  Something  hath  befallen  him, 

27.  he  is  not  clean;  surely  he  is  not  clean.  And  it  came  to 
pass  on  the  morrow  after  the  new  moon,  which  was 
the  second  day,  that  David's  place  was  empty:  and 

.  Saul  said  unto  Jonathan  his  son.  Wherefore  cometh 
not  the  son  of  Jesse  to  meat,^  neither  yesterday,  nor 

28.  to-day?  And  Jonathan  answered  Saul,  David  ear- 
nestly asked  leave  of  me  to  go   to  ^  Beth-lehem: 

29.  and  he  said.  Let  me  go,  I  pray  thee;  for  our  family 
hath  a  sacrifice  in  the  city;  and  my  brother,  he  hath 

1  G.  the  table  as  v.  29.  2  g.  adds  his  city. 

25.  By  the  wall.  The  king's  place  is  very  particularly  described. 
The  seat  was  evidently  so  placed  that  Saul  had  his  back  to  the  wall. 
Stood  up  or  rose  up  is  inappropriate,  and  we  should  read  with  G. : 
Jonathan  was  opposite;  that  he  was  sitting  is  clear  from  v.  34.  Abner 
sat  between  Saul  and  his  son  on  one  side,  and  David's  empty  seat 
was  evidently  opposite  Abner. 

26.  Spake  not  anjrthing.  Saul  had  evil  designs  on  David,  but  he 
was  powerless  in  David's  absence,  and  therefore  he  was  silent  so  as 
not  to  disclose  his  purpose.  Befallen  him.  Saul's  idea  is  that  an  ac- 
cidental defiling  (Budde  suggests  Deut.  23  :  11)  of  David,  and  as  this 
was  a  religious  feast,  he  could  not  eat  until  purification  was  effected. 
Clean.  G.  avoids  the  tautology,  reading:  he  is  unclean,  and  has  not 
been  purified,  because  after  the  defilement,  time  had  not  served. 

27.  Unto  Jonathan.  Because  of  the  known  intimacy  between 
the  two,  the  king  assumes  that  Jonathan  will  know  why  David  was 
absent.  Possibly  he  was  irritated  because  an  explanation  had  not 
been  volunteered.  His  own  theory,  of  course,  broke  down  at  the 
continued  absence  on  the  second  day  of  the  feast. 

28  f.  Jonathan  states  very  fully  and  forcibly  the  excuse  which 
had  been  devised,  v.  6,  It  is  not  impossible  that  David  had  actually 
gone  to  Bethlehem,  cf.  on  v.  19. 

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commanded  me  to  be  there:  and  now,  if  I  have  found 
favour  in  thine  eyes,  let  me  get  away,  I  pray  thee, 
and  see  my  brethren.    Therefore  he  is  not  come  unto 

30.  the  king's  table.  Then  Saul's  anger  was  kindled 
against  Jonathan,  and  he  said  unto  him,  Thou  son  of  a 
perverse  rebellious  woman,  do  not  I  know  that  thou 
hast  chosen  the  son  of  Jesse  to  thine  own  shame,  and 

31.  unto  the  shame  of  thy  mother's  nakedness?  For  as 
long  as  the  son  of  Jesse  hveth  upon  the  ground,  thou 
shalt  not  be  stablished,  nor  thy  kingdom.  Wherefore 
now  send  and  fetch  ^  him  unto  me,^  for  he  shall  surely 

32.  die.  And  Jonathan  answered  Saul  his  father,  and 
said  unto  him.  Wherefore  should  he  be  put  to  death? 

2^:^,.  what  hath  he  done?    And  Saul  cast  his  spear  at  him  to 

1  G.  The  young  man. 

30.  Against  Jonathan,  because  he  had  allowed  the  enemy  to  es- 
cape from  his  hand  at  least  for  the  time  being.  The  anger  of  Saul 
was  heightened  because  another  such  favorable  chance  to  strike  David 
down  might  not  come  again  soon.  Jonathan  may  have  exceeded 
his  rights  in  giving  David  leave  of  absence.  Perverse,  rebellious 
woman  is  a  doubtful  rendering  of  a  very  difficult  text.  Many  foUow 
a  shghtly  amended  text  and  get:  son  of  a  rebellious  girl,  i.  e.,  a  nmaway 
slave  or  one  who  has  departed  from  the  paths  of  virtue.  Saul  had 
married  while  he  was  an  obscure  peasant,  and  his  wife's  social  status 
may  have  been  very  humble.  Abusing  the  son  by  casting  reproach 
on  his  origin  is  not  uncommon.  Hast  chosen  or  better  with  G., 
art  a  companion  of.  Mother's  nakedness.  The  disloyalty  of  the  son 
brings  shame  to  his  mother.  Saul  may  also  mean  that  Jonathan's 
loss  of  the  throne  brings  nakedness  to  his  mother. 

31.  Saul  now  discloses  his  fear  of  David  as  a  rival,  the  natural 
construction  for  him  to  put  on  the  song  of  the  women,  18  :  7.  It  is 
more  forcible  to  read  with  G.  simply:  thy  kingdom  shall  not  be  estab- 
lished. If  David  lives,  he  wiU  be  a  menace  to  the  succession.  Saul 
seems  to  have  felt  no  doubt  that  he  could  maintain  himself  against 
David. 

33.  Jonathan's  question  incensed  the  king  to  the  point  that  he 
came  near  slajdng  his  son.    Cast  impKes  that  he  tried  to  slay  Jona- 

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smite  him:  whereby  Jonathan  knew  that  it  was  deter- 

34.  mined  of  his  father  to  put  David  to  death.  So  Jona- 
than arose  from  the  table  in  fierce  anger,  and  did  eat 
no  meat  the  second  day  of  the  month:  for  he  was 
grieved  for  David,  because  his  father  had  done  him 
shame. 

35.  And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  morning,  that  Jonathan 
went  out  into  the  field  at  the  time  appointed  with 

36.  David,  and  a  little  lad  with  him.  And  he  said  unto  his 
lad,  Run,  find  now  the  arrows  which  I  shoot.    And  as 

37.  the  lad  ran,  he  shot  an  arrow  beyond  him.  And  when 
the  lad  was  come  to  the  place  of  the  arrow  which 
Jonathan  had  shot,  Jonathan  cried  after  the  lad,  and 

^S.  said,  Is  not  the  arrow  beyond  thee?  And  Jonathan 
cried  after  the  lad.  Make  speed,  haste,  stay  not.  And 
Jonathan's  lad  gathered  up  the  arrows,^  and  came  to 

1  Arrow. 

than  and  failed.  The  word  may  be  rendered  as  Gr.  raised,  and  that 
is  better,  for  he  could  hardly  have  failed  if  he  had  attempted  to 
strike.  Further,  it  appears  that  Jonathan  did  not  leave  his  seat,  v.  34. 
The  king  threatened  Jonathan,  and  his  act  convinced  the  latter  that 
David's  life  was  indeed  in  great  danger. 

34.  Jonathan  in  turn  was  angered,  so  that  he  refused  the  food  at 
his  father's  table,  even  though  it  was  a  rehgious  festival.  Done  him 
shame  in  accusing  of  crime  one  who  was  guilty  of  no  wrong. 

David's  apprehension  is  confirmed  by  Jonathan,  and  he  takes  flight, 
vs.  35-42.  35.  At  the  time  appointed.  The  word  stresses  rather 
the  appointment  than  time;  indeed  it  often  means  place;  or  here 
both,  and  we  might  well  render  for  the  meeting  with  David. 

36  f .  The  plan  to  warn  David  by  the  words  to  the  lad  who  was  to 
retrieve  the  arrows  is  now  carried  out.  The  expressions  vary  some- 
what from  those  used  in  v.  21  f.,  but  such  differences  are  not  uncom- 
mon. 

38.  Make  speed,  haste,  should  be  rendered  hasten  quickly.  The 
words  ostensibly  addressed  to  the  boy  are  intended  to  impress  upon 
the  concealed  David  the  urgency  of  the  danger. 

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39.  his  master.     But  the  lad  knew  not  anything:  only 

40.  Jonathan  and  David  knew  the  matter.  And  Jonathan 
gave  his  weapons  unto  his  lad,  and  said  unto  him, 

41.  Go,  carry  them  to  the  city.  And  as  soon  as  the  lad 
was  gone,  David  arose  out  of  a  place  toward  the 
South,  and  fell  on  his  face  to  the  ground,  and  bowed 
himself  three  times:  and  they  kissed  one  another,  and 

42.  wept  one  with  another,  until  David  exceeded.  And 
Jonathan  said  to  David,  Go  in  peace,  forasmuch  as  we 
have  sworn  both  of  us  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  saying, 
The  Lord  shall  be  between  me  and  thee,  and  between 
my  seed  and  thy  seed,  for  ever.  And  he  arose  and  de- 
parted: and  Jonathan  went  into  the  city. 

21.  Then  came  David  to  Nob  to  Ahimelech  the  priest: 
and  Ahimelech  came  to  meet  David  trembling,  and 

40.  Weapons  includes  the  bow  and  other  arrows  which  Jonathan 
had.  The  boy  we  are  told,  v.  39,  knew  nothing  of  David's  presence 
or  of  the  signal  that  had  been  given,  and  to  keep  him  in  ignorance 
he  is  sent  back  to  the  city  while  his  master  has  a  few  parting  words 
with  his  friend.  Smith  thinks  this  interview  due  to  the  grace  of 
the  redactor,  because  the  danger  would  be  too  great.  But  brave 
men  will  often  run  serious  risks  for  sentiment,  and  neither  Jonathan 
nor  David  was  timid. 

41.  The  place  was  that  mentioned  in  v.  19  and  we  should  read 
here  also:  from  the  side  of  the  mound.  As  soon  as  David  heard  the 
dismissal  of  the  boy,  great  as  the  peril  was  to  him,  he  emerged  from 
his  hiding  place  once  more  to  greet  his  trusty  friend.  David  ex- 
ceeded is  improbable.  We  may  follow  G.  and  get  they  wept  .  .  .  to 
excess.     But  the  text  is  probably  corrupted  more  deeply  than  that. 

42.  Jonathan  imdtes  David  to  depart  in  safety  because  they  are 
mutually  bound  to  protect  each  other  by  a  solemn  covenant  in  the 
name  of  Jahveh. 

At  the  temple  of  Nob  David  obtains  holy  bread  and  a  sword,  21 : 1-9. 
I.  Nob  is  in  Benjamin  and  not  very  far  from  Jerusalem,  Neh.  11  : 
32,  Is.  10  :  32.  David  apparently  started  towards  his  own  home. 
Trembling,  cf.  16  :  4.  David  as  the  captain  of  a  troop  had  journeyed 
with  his  men,  and  Ahimelech  was  alarmed  at  the  unusual  spectacle. 

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said  unto  him,  Why  art  thou  alone,  and  no  man  with 

2.  thee?  And  David  said  unto  Ahimelech  the  priest, 
The  king  hath  commanded  me  a  business,  and  hath 
said  unto  me.  Let  no  man  know  anything  of  the 
business  whereabout  I  send  thee,  and  what  I  have 
commanded  thee:  and  I  have  appointed  the  young 

3.  men  to  such  and  such  a  place.  Now  therefore  what  is 
under  thine  hand?  give  me  five  loaves  of  bread  in 

4.  mine  hand,  or  whatsoever  there  is  present.  And  the 
priest  answered  David,  and  said.  There  is  no  common 
bread  under  mine  hand,  but  there  is  holy  bread;  if 
only   the   young   men   have   kept   themselves   from 

5.  women. ^    And  David  answered  the  priest,  and  said 

1  G.  adds:  they  might  eat  it. 

2.  To  avoid  suspicion  David  makes  up  a  story  of  a  secret  mission 
to  account  for  his  being  alone.  A  retinue  would  attract  too  much 
attention.  To  secure  as  much  provision  as  possible  he  further  says 
he  has  directed  his  men  to  meet  him  at  a  certain  place,  an  obscure 
expression  for  which  G.  has  the  interesting  reading  at  a  place  called 
Faith  oj  God. 

3.  The  specific  request  for  five  loaves  does  not  fit  well  after  the 
general  inquiry,  and  it  is  therefore  better  to  read  with  Gr:  aiid  now 
if  there  are  five  loaves  of  bread  under  thy  hand,  give  them  into  my  hand, 
or  whatever  may  be  found.  The  five  loaves  indicate  that  David 
often  travelled  with  a  small  band.  As  there  was  a  large  company 
of  priests  Hving  at  the  sanctuary,  he  would  naturally  expect  to  find 
a  good  store  of  bread. 

4.  Common  bread  is  that  ordinarily  eaten  for  food.  The  holy 
bread,  which  had  been  used  as  an  offering,  could  be  eaten  by  any  one 
who  was  clean,  and  probably  served  as  the  ordinary  food  of  the 
large  company  of  priests,  to  whose  use  it  was  restricted  in  the  later 
laws.  According  to  the  ideas  of  the  age  any  sexual  intercourse  was 
defihng  for  a  time.  (See  art.  "  Unclean,"  Hastings,  Diet.  Bib.) 

5.  In  our  text  David's  assurance  is  obscure.  It  is  best  to  render: 
Assuredly  women  had  been  kept  from  us  as  heretofore  when  I  came  out. 
Then  David  asserts  that  though  the  mission  was  a  common  one, 
in  contrast  to  the  sacred  mission  of  war,  not  requiring  offerings  or 

174 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


unto  him,  Of  a  truth  women  have  been  kept  from  us 
about  these  three  days;  when  I  came  out,  the  vessels 
of  the  young  men  were  holy,  though  it  was  but  a 
common  journey;  how  much  more  then  to-day  shall 

6.  their  vessels  be  holy?  So  the  priest  gave  him  holy 
bread:  for  there  was  no  bread  there  but  the  shewbread, 
that  was  taken  from  before  the  Lord,  to  put  hot  bread 

7.  in  the  day  when  it  was  taken  away.  Now  a  certain 
man  of  the  servants  of  Saul  was  there  that  day,  de- 
tained before  the  Lord;  and  his  name  was  Doeg  the 
Edomite,  the  chiefest  of  the  herdmen  that  belonged 

8.  to  Saul.  And  David  said  unto  Ahimelech,  And  is 
there  not  here  under  thine  hand  spear  or  sword?  for  I 
have  neither  brought  my  sword  nor  my  weapons  with 

9.  me,  because  the  king's  business  required  haste.    And 

oracles,  the  vessels  of  the  company  were  ceremonially  clean.  One 
point  seems  to  be  clear:  that  David  was  particular  about  cleanness 
even  for  a  profane  enterprise.  The  vessels  have  been  explained  as 
the  sacks  in  which  the  men  carried  their  provisions,  as  their  weapons, 
and  as  their  bodies  or  euphemistically  as  in  N.  T.  for  the  sexual 
organs.  In  view  of  the  priests'  requirement,  the  last  theory  seems 
most  fitting. 

6.  Shewbread  is  literally  bread  of  presence,  bread  that  has  been 
consecrated  by  the  presence  of  Jahveh.  This  bread  was  kept  on 
the  altar  until  replaced  by  fresh  bread,  the  change  according  to  the 
late  law  being  made  on  the  Sabbath,  Lev.  24  :  8. 

7.  The  mention  of  Doeg  is  important  in  view  of  the  tragic  sequel 
to  David's  visit  described  in  22  :  9  ff.  Detained  indicates  that  Doeg 
had  visited  the  sanctuary  for  some  ceremony  that  was  not  yet  com- 
pleted. Though  a  foreigner  he  was  freely  admitted  to  the  privileges 
of  the  temple,  Chiefest  of  the  herdsmen  is  an  impossible  rendermg. 
We  may  read  with  G.ithe  manager  of  Saul's  mules ^  or  with  Gratz, 
followed  by  Driver,  the  mightiest  of  Saul's  runners. 

9.  So  far  as  it  goes  this  statement  confirms  the  story  in  ch.  17  of 
David's  slaughter  of  Goliath.  If  the  latter's  sword  were  as  large 
proportionately  as  his  other  weapons,  17  :  5-7,  it  would  have  been 
pretty  heavy  for  David.     Goliath  is,  however,  probably  a  gloss. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


the  priest  said,  The  sword  of  Goliath  the  PhiHstine, 
whom  thou  slewest  in  the  vale  of  Elah,  behold,  it  is 
here  wrapped  in  a  cloth  behind  the  ephod:  if  thou 
wilt  take  that,  take  it:  for  there  is  no  other  save  that 
here.  And  David  said.  There  is  none  like  that;  give 
it  me.^ 

10.  And  David  arose,  and  fled  that  day  for  fear  of  Saul, 

11.  and  went  to  Achish  the  king  of  Gath.  And  the  serv- 
ants of  Achish  said  unto  him,  Is  not  this  David  the 
king  of  the  land?  did  they  not  sing  one  to  another  of 
him  in  dances,  saying, 

Saul  hath  slain  his  thousands, 

12.  And  David  his  ten  thousands. 


G.  adds:  and  he  gave  il  lo  him. 


The  ephod  is  here  an  image  such  as  Gideon  made,  Judg.  8:27.  The 
sword  was  laid  up  in  the  temple  as  a  trophy,  and  its  being  at  Nob 
indicates  that  this  was  a  favorite  resort  for  David. 

David's  flight  leads  him  to  Gath,  when  he  finds  fresh  danger, 
vs.  10-15.  The  passage  is  from  a  different  source  than  vv.  1-9,  and 
describes  an  initial  flight  from  Saul;  David  deems  the  danger  so  great 
that  he  abandons  his  own  country.  He  is  seized  by  the  PhiHstines 
and  taken  before  Achish  who  releases  him  in  the  belief,  that  he  is 
deranged.     Cf.  Introd. 

II.  The  king  of  the  land  is  usually  regarded  as  an  indication  of 
the  poor  historical  insight  of  the  writer.  It  is  barely  possible  that 
king  is  used  in  a  loose  sense,  the  Philistines  meaning  that  David 
rather  than  Saul  was  the  real  power  in  Israel.  The  song  which  con- 
firmed the  suspicions  of  the  Philistine  courtiers  is  repeated  from  18:7. 

12  f.  Laid  up  suggests  storing  in  memory,  a  wrong  idea  here; 
render  took  these  words  to  heart.  David  knew  the  natural  course 
for  one  recognized  as  an  enemy,  and  had  good  reason  to  fear  for  his 
life.  But  he  was  resourceful  always.  His  course  of  action  was 
suggested  by  his  close  association  with  the  mad  king  of  Israel  and 
by  the  fact  that  the  person  of  an  insane  man  was  held  sacred.  In 
their  hands  suggests  that  David  had  been  seized  by  the  Philistines. 
Scrabbled  is  not  as  good  as  the  reading  of  G.,  drummed,  i.  e.,  with  his 
fingers.  His  spittle.  David  was  imitating  frothing  from  the  mouth 
to  indicate  the  severity  of  his  attack. 

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And  David  laid  up  these  words  in  his  heart,  and  was 

13.  sore  afraid  of  Achish  the  king  of  Gath.  And  he 
changed  his  behaviour  before  them,  and  feigned  him- 
self mad  in  their  hands,  and  scrabbled  on  the  doors  of 

14.  the  gate,  and  let  his  spittle  fall  down  upon  his  beard. 
Then  said  Achish  unto  his  servants,  Lo,  ye  see  the  man 

15.  is  mad:  wherefore  then  have  ye  brought  him  to  me? 
Do  I  lack  mad  men,  that  ye  have  brought  this  fellow 
to  play  the  mad  man  in  my  presence?  shall  this  fellow 
come  into  my  house? 

22.  David  therefore  departed  thence,  and  escaped  to  the 

cave  of  Adullam:  and  when  his  brethren  and  all  his 

father's  house  heard  it,  they  went  down  thither  to 

2.  him.    And  every  one  that  was  in  distress,  and  every 

14.  The  king's  reproof  of  his  subjects  can  best  be  explained  by 
supposing  that  on  his  way  to  Gath  David  was  sized  and  taken  to 
the  king,  that  he  might  pass  judgment  on  him. 

15.  Achish's  question  shows  that  he  had  enough  madmen,  prob- 
ably such  as  were  found  in  any  country.  It  is  not  necessary  to 
assume  any  plethora,  but  the  king  naturally  did  not  want  any  more. 
There  is  no  sequel  to  this  story. 

(2)  SauVs  decline  and  David's  rise,  22  :  1-28  :  3 

David  becomes  the  leader  of  a  band  of  outlaws,  22  : 1-5.  This 
section  is  important  as  it  marks  an  epoch  in  David's  career,  when 
he  becomes  for  the  first  time  the  leader  of  a  force  of  men  that  were 
his  own.  Never  again  does  he  appear  as  a  solitary  fugitive.  His 
action  in  organizing  this  band  is  a  step  towards  the  throne,  i .  Cave. 
In  V.  5  it  is  clear  that  David's  habitat  is  a  stronghold.  In  2  Sam. 
23  :  13  f,  and  i  Chron.  11  :  15  f.  we  have  the  same  combination  of 
cave  and  stronghold.  Most  scholars  follow  Wellhausen  and  read 
stronghold  here.  Adullam  was  in  the  lowlands  of  Judah,  the  general 
region  of  David's  home.  Father's  house.  David  was  proscribed  as 
an  outlaw,  involving  his  family  in  danger,  and  so  his  clan  gathers 
to  support  him  and  to  protect  themselves. 

2.  Distress  or  straits  covers  trouble  of  various  kinds.  In  debt  so 
hopelessly  that  the  victim  was  in  danger  of   being  sold  as  a  slave. 

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22  13  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


one  that  was  in  debt,  and  every  one  that  was  discon- 
tented, gathered  themselves  unto  him;  and  he  became 
captain  over  them:  and  there  were  with  him  about 
four  hundred  men. 

3.  And  David  went  thence  to  Mizpeh  of  Moab:  and  he 
said  unto  the  king  of  Moab,  Let  my  father  and  my 
mother,  I  pray  thee,  come  forth,  and  be  with  you,  till 

4.  I  know  what  God  will  do  for  me.  And  he  brought 
them  before  the  king  of  Moab:  and  they  dwelt  with 

5.  him  all  the  while  that  David  was  in  the  hold.  And 
the  prophet  Gad  said  unto  David,  Abide  not  in  the 
hold;  depart,  and  get  thee  into  the  land  of  Judah. 
Then  David  departed,  and  came  into  the  forest  of 
Hereth. 


Discontented,  literally,  hitter  of  spirit,  because  of  wrongs  suffered,  or 
for  failure  to  get  along  in  the  social  order.  David's  band  was  there- 
fore made  up  of  this  own  clan  who  were  in  danger,  and  of  various 
lawless  elements  who  sought  relief  under  his  banner.  Under  David's 
capable  leadership  this  rough  material  was  welded  into  a  most  effective 
fighting  force.  Some  time  must  have  been  consumed  in  mustering 
this  force. 

3.  Come  forth  is  not  very  appropriate;  it  is  better  to  read  with 
Vulgate  dwell,  and  dispense  with  the  interpolated  and  he.  What  God 
will  do  shows  David's  invariable  piety,  and  his  belief  that  God  would 
direct  his  fortunes.  His  parents  were  in  danger  on  his  account,  and 
so  he  seeks  asylum  for  them  in  Moab,  the  home  of  his  great-grand- 
mother, Ruth  4  :  21  f. 

5.  Gad  rather  than  Abiathar  appears  here  as  David's  counsellor, 
reveaUng  God's  will  to  him.  Hold  or  better  stronghold,  refers  to 
AduUam,  and  not  to  Mizpeh  of  Moab.  Gad's  point  is  that  if  David 
remains  in  a  fortified  place  with  his  small  force,  he  might  easily  be 
trapped.  In  contrast  to  the  fortress  be  was  counselled  to  live  in  the 
land  or  open  country  of  Judah,  but  the  specific  place  called  the  forest 
of  Hereth  has  not  yet  been  identified.  In  a  forest  he  would  find  the 
safest  retreat. 

Saul  puts  to  death  all  the  priests  of  Nob  save  Abiathar  who  escapes 
and  joins  David,  vs.  6-23.    This  passage  is  the  sequel  to  21  : 1-9. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


6.  And  Saul  heard  that  David  was  discovered,  and  the 
men  that  were  with  him:  now  Saul  was  sitting  in 
Gibeah,  under  the  tamarisk  tree  in  Ramah/  with  his 
spear  in  his  hand,  and  all  his  servants  were  standing 

7.  about  him.  And  Saul  said  unto  his  servants  that 
stood  about  him,  Hear  now,  ye  Benjamites;  will  the 
son  of  Jesse  give  every  one  of  you  fields  and  vineyards, 
will  he  make  you  all  captains  of  thousands  and  cap- 

8.  tains  of  hundreds;  that  all  of  you  have  conspired 
against  me,  and  there  is  none  that  discloseth  to  me 
when  my  son  maketh  a  league  with  the  son  of  Jesse, 
and  there  is  none  of  you  that  is  sorry  for  me,  or  dis- 

1  G.  Bamah,  a  sanctuary  on  a  hill. 

The  cold-blooded  murder  of  the  innocent  priests  reveals  the  fierceness 
of  Saul's  pursuit  of  David. 

6.  The  first  sentence  would  fit  admirably  before  v.  5  as  the  ground 
for  Gad's  advice,  but  it  is  so  meaningless  in  its  present  place  that 
Smith  deems  it  an  editorial  insertion.  The  basis  of  Saul's  action  is 
not  the  discovery  of  David's  resort,  but  of  the  treasonable  relations 
between  Jonathan  and  David. 

7.  Benjamites.  Saul's  body-guard  or  household  was  made  up  of 
members  of  his  own  tribe.  He  evidently  strove  to  preserve  their 
loyalty  by  generous  gifts  both  of  property  and  of  oflSces.  His  question 
shows  that  he  believed  that  David  was  trying  to  supplant  him.  He 
shows  something  of  his  own  methods  of  holding  his  people. 

8.  Conspired  against  me,  by  silence  in  failing  to  report  what  it  is 
assumed  wrongly  that  they  all  knew.  There  are  two  counts  in  the 
charge,  i.  The  failure  to  report  the  agreement  between  Jonathan 
and  David,  doubtless  that  described  in  ch.  20  of  which  Saul  had 
heard.  2.  The  failure  to  report  Jonathan's  moving  David  against 
Saul.  This  idea  was  due  to  Saul's  mad  jealousy,  for  there  is  no  hint 
in  our  sources  that  Jonathan  went  any  further  than  to  aid  David 
to  escape  from  Saul.  Sorry.  The  Hebrew  word  means  sick.  The 
translators  have  followed  G.  which  reads:  has  compassion  on  me. 
Lie  in  wait  is  an  extreme  charge  even  for  Saul,  unless  we  put  this 
incident  after  chs.  24,  26.  It  sufi5ces  to  follow  G.  stirred  up  my 
servant  as  an  enemy  against  me.  As  Smith  says,  Saul's  charges  lie 
against  Jonathan  rather  than  David. 

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22:9  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


closeth  unto  me  that  my  son  hath  stirred  up  my  serv- 

9.  ant  against  me,  to  He  in  wait,  as  at  this  day?    Then 

answered  Doeg  the  Edomite,^  which  stood  by  the 

servants  ^  of  Saul,  and  said,  I  saw  the  son  of  Jesse 

10.  coming  to  Nob,  to  Ahimelech  the  son  of  Ahitub.  And 
he  inquired  of  the  Lord  for  him,  and  gave  him  victuals, 
and  gave  him  the  sword  of  Goliath  the  PhiHstine. 

11.  Then  the  king  sent  to  call  Ahimelech  the  priest,  the 
son  of  Ahitub,  and  all  his  father's  house,  the  priests 
that  were  in  Nob:  and  they  came  all  of  them  to  the 

12.  king.    And  Saul  said.  Hear  now,  thou  son  of  Ahitub. 

13.  And  he  answered.  Here  I  am,^  my  lord.  And  Saul 
said  unto  him,  Why  have  ye  conspired  against  me, 
thou  and  the  son  of  Jesse,  in  that  thou  hast  given 
him  bread,  and  a  sword,  and  hast  inquired  of  God  for 
him,  that  he  should  rise  against  me,  to  lie  in  wait, 

14.  as  at  this  day?    Then  Ahimelech  answered  the  king, 

1  G.  Aramean.  2  q_  mules.  ^  G.  inserts,  speak. 

9  f.  Doeg  {cf.  21  :  S)  was  not  one  of  Saul's  courtiers,  but  happened 
to  be  present,  perhaps  because  he  served  under  them.  His  report 
goes  beyond  the  narrative  of  21  :  1-9,  for  there  was  no  mention 
of  an  oracle.  As  Saul  includes  this  in  the  charge  against  Ahimelech, 
and  the  priest  does  not  deny  it,  the  statement  is  probably  correct. 
Goliath  is  harmonistic,  cf.  on  17  :  1-18  :  5. 

II.  All  his  father's  house  and  the  priests  that  were  in  Nob  are  in 
apposition,  for  all  of  the  priests  belonged  to  the  same  clan,  the  office 
being  held  by  all  in  the  same  family. 

13.  Saul  regards  the  favors  shown  to  Da\dd  as  acts  of  hostility 
against  himself,  unmindful  of  the  fact  that  the  priest  knew  nothing 
of  Saul's  quarrel  with  David.  To  lie  in  wait  should  be  amended  as 
V.  8,  G.  having  the  same  reading  in  both  places. 

14  f.  Is  taken  into  thy  council  is  a  strained  rendering.  The  text 
really  has:  turns  aside  to  thy  obedience.  By  a  slight  change  based  on 
G.  we  get  a  more  suitable  text:  is  chief  of  thy  body-guard.  Ahimelech 
enumerates  the  honors  which  have  been  conferred  upon  David  by 
Saul  as  a  sufficient  justification  of  the  services  he  had  rendered. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  22 :  l8 


and  said,  And  who  among  all  thy  servants  is  so  faith- 
ful as  David,  which  is  the  king's  son  in  law,  and  is 
taken  into  thy  council,  and  is  honourable  in  thine 

15.  house?  Have  I  to-day  begun  to  inquire  of  God  for 
him?  be  it  far  from  me:  let  not  the  king  impute  any 
thing  unto  his  servant,  nor  to  all  the  house  of  my 
father:  for  thy  servant  knoweth  nothing  of  all  this, 

16.  less  or  more.  And  the  king  said,  Thou  shalt  surely 
die,   Ahimelech,   thou,   and  all   thy  father's  house. 

17.  And  the  king  said  unto  the  guard  that  stood  about 
him,  Turn,  and  slay  the  priests  of  the  Lord;  because 
their  hand  also  is  with  David,  and  because  they  knew 
that  he  fled,  and  did  not  disclose  it  to  me.  But  the 
servants  of  the  king  would  not  put  forth  their  hand  to 

18.  fall  upon  the  priests  of  the  Lord.    And  the  king  said 

At  the  same  time  he  asserts  the  loyalty  of  David.  The  priest  further 
declares  that  he  had  habitually  obtained  oracles  for  David  when  he 
was  on  the  king's  business,  and  ends  by  declaring  that  neither  he  nor 
any  of  his  company  knew  anything  whatever  of  the  charges  which 
Saul  now  makes  against  David. 

16.  The  king's  judgment  was  based  on  tlie  priest's  admission  that 
he  had  committed  the  acts  that  were  charged.  That  he  was  innocent 
of  any  evil  intention  makes  no  difference  to  the  king.  The  punishment 
of  the  whole  family  was  unhappily  quite  usual,  cf.  the  case  of  Achan, 
Josh.  7  :  24. 

17.  Guard,  literally  nmwer^.  These  were  different  from  the  court- 
iers mentioned  above.  They  ran  before  the  royal  chariot  and  served 
as  a  guard.  To  justify  his  severe  sentence  the  king  now  falsely 
charges  the  priests  with  a  guilty  knowledge  of  David's  flight.  The 
persons  of  the  priests  were  sacred,  and  the  guard  mutiny  rather  than 
slay  them,  incurring  serious  risk  to  themselves,  though  Saul  overlooked 
their  disobedience. 

18.  Doeg  was  a  foreigner  and  would  not  stand  so  much  in  awe  of 
the  priests  of  Jahveh;  moreover,  by  his  readiness  to  tell  about 
Ahimelech's  innocent  act,  he  appears  to  have  been  keen  to  stand 
well  with  Saul.  Four  score  and  five.  The  large  company  of  priests 
shows  that  Nob  was  an  important  sanctuary  at  the  time.     G.  has  305. 

181 


22 :  19  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


to  Doeg,  Turn  thou,  and  fall  upon  the  priests.  And 
Doeg  the  Edomite  turned,  and  he  fell  upon  the  priests, 
and  he  slew  on  that  day  fourscore  and  five  persons 

19.  that  did  wear  a  Hnen  ephod.  And  Nob,  the  city  of  the 
priests,  smote  he  with  the  edge  of  the  sword,  both 
men  and  women,  children  and  suckHngs,  and  oxen 
and  asses  and  sheep,^  with  the  edge  of  the  sword.^ 

20.  And  one  of  the  sons  of  Ahimelech  the  son  of  Aiiitub, 
named   Abiathar,    escaped,    and   fled    after   David. 

21.  And  Abiathar  told  David  that  Saul  had  slain  the 

22.  Lord's  priests.  And  David  said  unto  Abiathar,  I 
knew  on  that  day,  when  Doeg  the  Edomite  was  there, 
that  he  would  surely  tell  Saul:  I  have  occasioned  the 
death  of  all  the  persons  of  thy  father's  house.    Abide 

23.  thou  with  me,  fear  not;  for  he  that  seeketh  my  life 
seeketh  thy  life:  for  with  me  thou  shalt  be  in  safeguard. 

1  Omit  with  G. 

19.  Probably  the  runners  or  guard  of  v.  17  executed  this  brutal 
order.    Saul's  vengeance  was  thorough. 

20.  Abiathar  becomes  an  important  figure  in  the  history  until  he 
was  deposed  by  Solomon  on  account  of  his  participation  in  the  rebel- 
lion of  Adonijah,  i  Kings  2  :  26  f.  Smith  suggests  that  he  had  been 
left  behind  at  Nob.  It  is  more  probable  that  in  the  confusion  of  the 
slaughter  he  took  to  his  heels  and  got  away. 

22.1  have  occasioned  the  death  gives  the  right  sense,  but  it  is  a 
very  free  rendering  of  a  passage  which  has  caused  much  discussion. 
It  is  simplest  in  view  of  the  expression  turn  ajidfall  upon  in  v.  17  f.  to 
suppose  an  ellipsis,  /  have  turned  and  fallen  upon  the  life  of  thy  family. 
David  realizes  that  his  misrepresentations  have  been  the  undoing 
of  a  company  of  innocent  men.  His  remark  is  psychologically  inter- 
esting. He  says  he  knew  that  Doeg  would  tell,  and  yet  he  went  on 
the  course  to  bring  trouble  to  the  priests.  David  refers  to  a  knowl- 
edge perceived  at  the  time  and  yet  not  coming  sufficiently  in  the 
field  of  consciousness  to  serve  as  a  basis  for  action. 

23.  The  same  person  who  would  slay  David  would  kill  Abiathar, 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  23 

23.  And  they  told  David,  saying,  Behold,  the  PhiUstines 
are  fighting  against  Keilah,  and  they  rob  the  threshing- 

2.  floors.  Therefore  David  inquired  of  the  Lord,  saying, 
Shall  I  go  and  smite  these  PhiHstines?  And  the  Lord 
said  unto  David,  Go,  and  smite  the  Philistines,  and 

3.  save  Keilah.  And  David's  men  said  unto  him,  Behold, 
we  be  afraid  here  in  Judah:  how  much  more  then  if 
we  go  to  Keilah  against  the  armies  of  the  PhiHstines? 

4.  Then  David  inquired  of  the  Lord  yet  again.  And  the 
Lord  answered  him  and  said.  Arise,  go  down  to 
Keilah;  for  I  will  deliver  the  PhiHstines  into  thine 

5.  hand.    And  David  and  his  men  went  to  Keilah,  and 

therefore  to  protect  himself  he  must  protect  the  fugitive  priest. 
It  is  better  to  transpose :  he  that  seekest  thy  life  seekest  my  life. 

David  rescues  Keilah,  but  flees  upon  learning  of  Saul's  purpose 
to  attack  him,  23  : 1-15.  i.  Keilah  is  in  the  lowlands  of  Judah, 
closely  bordering  on  the  Philistine  plains.  David  was  presumably 
in  the  forest  of  Hereth,  22  :  5.  Adullam,  the  first  headquarters 
of  David,  was  not  far  from  Keilah,  and  he  was  still  probably  in 
the  wild  lands  of  the  neighborhood.  Threshing-floors.  The  inva- 
sion was  evidently  made  by  a  small  band  of  plunderers,  and  it 
was  evidently  harvest  time.  The  Philistines  came  to  rob  the  Ju- 
deans  of  their  grain  just  after  it  was  threshed.  Doubtless  some  of 
the  Keilites  sought  David  to  procure  his  protection. 

2.  Inquired.  Divine  counsel  was  probably  obtained  through  God 
the  prophet,  22  :  5 ;  we  shall  see  reason  to  believe  that  Abiathar  had 
not  yet  joined  David. 

3  f .  We  be  afraid  points  to  the  dangers  from  Saul  as  indicated  by 
Gad,  22:5.  The  men  mean  that  an  attack  on  the  Philistines  would 
weaken  them  and  put  them  in  an  exposed  position.  In  Judah  does 
not  imply  that  Keilah  was  outside  of  Judean  power:  the  contrast 
is  between  the  open  country  and  the  exposed  position  of  a  town. 
David's  second  inquiry  of  Jahveh  indicates  no  doubt  on  his^  part, 
but  serves  as  an  assurance  to  his  men.  MiHtary  discipline  is  not 
very  strong  in  a  body  organized  like  this. 

5.  And  brought  away  their  cattle  for  which  G.  has  a  better  read- 
ing :  and  they  fl&i  from  before  him,  though  it  has  the  Hebrew  text  too, 
apparently  a  duplicate  by  correction.  The  only  animals  the  Philis- 
tines would  have  would  be  a  few  beasts  to  carry  off  the  grain.    If 

183 


23:6  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL 


fought  with  the  PhiHstines,  and  brought  away  their 
cattle,  and  slew  them  with  a  great  slaughter.  So 
David  saved  the  inhabitants  of  Keilah, 

6.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Abiathar  the  son  of  Ahime- 
lech  fled  to  David  to  Keilah,  that  he  came  down  with 

7.  an  ephod  in  his  hand.  And  it  was  told  Saul  that  David 
was  come  to  Keilah.  And  Saul  said,  God  hath  de- 
livered him  into  mine  hand;  for  he  is  shut  in,  by 

8.  entering  into  a  town  that  hath  gates  and  bars.  And 
Saul  summoned  all  the  people  to  war,  to  go  down  to 

9.  Keilah,  to  besiege  David  and  his  men.  And  David 
knew  that  Saul  devised  mischief  against  him;  and  he 


the  text  is  right,  it  would  naturally  follow  the  story  of  the  slaugh- 
ter (as  it  is  in  G.).  David  again  flees  to  the  wilderness  because  he 
learns  of  Saul's  preparations  to  attack  him  in  Keilah,  vs.  6-15. 
6.  To  Keilah  impHes  that  Abiathar  joins  David  at  Keilah  after  he 
had  driven  off  the  Philistines.  Driver  follows  G.  making  Abiathar 
go  with  David  to  Keilah.  The  text  is  right,  for  otherwise  the  refer- 
ence to  the  ephod  should  come  sooner;  moreover,  the  description  of 
David's  inquiry  shows  that  it  is  different  from  that  in  vs.  2,  4.  The 
ephod  is  now  used  for  the  first  time.  For  the  last  clause  the  Hebrew 
text  can  only  be  rendered:  an  ephod  came  down  in  his  haitd.  The 
simplest  change  which  can  be  made  is  to  read :  be  brought  an  ephod  in 
his  hand.  The  ephod  is  that  from  Nob,  behind  which  the  sword  of 
the  Philistine  had  been  placed,  21  : 9.  In  his  flight,  Abiathar  had 
gone  to  Nob  and  rescued  the  ephod  which  was  of  great  value  as  an 
instrument  of  divination. 

7.  Delivered  is  from  G.  The  Hebrew  has  alienated,  which  is  un- 
suitable. Most  scholars  adopt  the  reading  sold  or  delivered.  Shut  in, 
so  that  he  can  no  longer  run  away  when  Saul  approaches.  Gates  and 
bars  shows  that  Keilah  was  a  fortified  city.  Once  it  was  surrounded 
by  Saul's  forces  there  would  be  no  escape  for  David. 

9.  Against  him  is  so  placed  in  the  original  as  to  make  it  emphatic. 
The  reason  is,  as  Smith  suggests,  that  Saul  presvmiably  had  given  out 
that  he  was  mobilizing  against  the  Philistines.  For  this  reason  we 
have  knew  instead  of  the  usual  was  told.  David  had  probably  been 
informed  of  the  muster  of  the  Benjamites,  and  he  knew  that  he 
would  be  the  objective. 

184 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


said  to  Abiathar  the  priest,  Bring  hither  the  ephod.^ 

10.  Then  said  David,  O  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel,  thy 
servant  hath  surely  heard  that  Saul  seeketh  to  come  to 

11.  Keilah,  to  destroy  the  city  for  my  sake.  Will  the  men 
of  Keilah  deliver  me  up  into  his  hand?  will  Saul  come 
down,  as  thy  servant  hath  heard?  O  Lord,  the  God  of 
Israel,  I  beseech  thee,   tell  thy  servant.     And  the 

12.  Lord  said,  He  will  come  down.  Then  said  David, 
Will  the  men  of  Keilah  deliver  up  me  and  my  men 
into  the  hand  of  Saul?    And  the  Lord  said,  They  will 

13.  deliver  thee  up.  Then  David  and  his  men,  which  were 
about  six  hundred,^  arose  and  departed  out  of  Keilah, 
and  went  whithersoever  they  could  go.   And  it  was  told 

1  G.  adds  of  Jahveh.  2  Q,,four  hundred. 

10.  In  seeking  an  oracle  by  the  ephod  the  inquirer  addresses 
Jahveh,  as  if  Jahveh  and  the  ephod  were  identical. 

II  f.  The  text  is  evidently  corrupt  as  one  question  is  repeated.  G. 
bears  testimony  to  corruption,  but  offers  Httle  help  to  clear  up  the  diffi- 
culty. Omitting  the  first  query  in  v.  11,  it  appears  that  David  seeks 
an  authoritative  reply  to  two  questions:  Will  Saul  come  down  against 
him  as  reported?  Will  the  citizens  of  Keilah  hand  him  and  his  men 
over  to  Saul?  The  first  question  was  unnecessary  as  we  learn  in  v.  9, 
that  David  knew  that  Saul  was  coming  against  him,  and  in  the  Syriac 
version  this  question  is  lacking.  It  looks  as  if  G.  had  originally  the 
same  text,  but  it  has  been  corrected  partly  to  get  closer  conformity  to 
the  Hebrew.  At  all  events  the  main  point  on  which  David  needs 
light  is  whether  the  Keilites  will  stand  by  their  rescuer  when  their 
city  is  attacked,  or  will  save  themselves  any  danger  by  turning  traitor 
to  David.  The  oracle  confirms  David's  suspicions,  so  that  he  would' 
have  to  contend  against  Saul's  forces  without  and  traitors  within. 

13.  If  our  text  is  right  David's  force  had  increased  by  fifty  per 
cent  since  its  organization.  Such  an  augmentation  is  not  improbable. 
Whithersoever  they  could  go  indicates  that  while  the  danger  from 
Saul  continued,  David  sought  no  fixed  abode,  but  moved  about  from 
place  to  place  as  he  found  provisions  and  shelter.  Forbare.  Saul 
gave  up  his  expedition  when  he  learned  that  David  had  abandoned 
Keilah.  At  this  time  he  was  not  prepared  to  follow  him  on  a  wild 
chase  in  the  wilderness. 

i8s 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Saul  that  David  was  escaped  from  Keilah;  and  he 
forbare  to  go  forth. 

14.  And  David  abode  in  the  wilderness  in  the  strong  holds, 
and  remained  in  the  hill  country  in  the  wilderness  of 
Ziph.    And  Saul  sought  him  every  day,  but  God  de- 

15.  Hvered  him  not  into  his  hand.  And  David  saw  that 
Saul  was  come  out  to  seek  his  life:  and  David  was  in 

16.  the  wilderness  of  Ziph  in  the  wood.  And  Jonathan 
Saul's  son  arose,  and  went  to  David  into  the  wood,  and 

17.  strengthened  his  hand  in  God. ^  And  he  said  unto  him, 
Fear  not:  for  the  hand  of  Saul  my  father  shall  not 
find  thee;  and  thou  shalt  be  king  over  Israel,  and  I 

1  G.  Jahveh. 

14.  This  verse  shows  a  dififerent  source,  for  contrary  to  v.  13, 
David  abides  in  a  definite  locahty  and  Saul  engages  in  constant  though 
fruitless  pursuit.  Ziph  is  in  the  barren  country  to  the  south  of  He- 
bron. Smith  thinks  that  this  name  does  not  belong  here,  as  the 
wilderness  refers  to  the  portion  of  Judah  lying  along  the  Dead  Sea. 

15.  Saw  seems  unsuitable,  and  it  is  best  with  Ewald,  followed  by 
many  scholars,  to  read  was  afraid,  i.  e.,  because  Saul  was  in  pursuit. 
Thus  we  have  a  motive  for  David's  retirement  to  some  secure  place. 
"Wood,  or  wooded  height,  the  real  meaning  of  the  word,  could  hardly 
be  found  in  the  Judean  wilderness.  The  word  is  apparently  a  proper 
name  in  Horesh,  the  location  of  which  is  unknown. 

Jonathan's  last  interview  with  David,  vs.  16-18.  Cf.  In  trod, 
16.  Into  the  wood,  or  at  Horesh,  cf.  on  v.  15.  Strengthened  his 
hand  means  to  sustain  or  encourage,  sometimes  by  supplying  means, 
Judg.  9  :  24,  sometimes  merely  by  word  or  example,  Jer.  23  :  14. 
In  God  suggests  Jonathan's  assurance  that  David  would  be  raised 
to  the  throne  by  divine  power. 

17.  Next  unto  thee.  Jonathan  expresses  himself  as  being  content 
to  occupy  a  subordinate  place  under  David  like  his  place  under  Saul. 
Knoweth.  This  assertion  introduces  something  quite  new,  for  we 
have  no  information  to  justify  the  statement.  Jonathan  declares  that 
Saul  knew  that  David  was  chosen  of  Jahveh  to  supplant  him  on  the 
throne,  as  if  the  king  knew  of  Samuel's  anointing.  Saul  accused 
David  of  aspiring  to  the  throne  wrongly.  If  Saul  were  informed  of 
this  interview  his  charges  in  22  : 8  would  be  justified. 

186 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  23 

shall  be  next  unto  thee;  and  that  also  Saul  my  father 

1 8.  knoweth.  And  they  two  made  a  covenant  before  the 
Lord:  and  David  abode  in  the  wood,  and  Jonathan 

19.  went  to  his  house.  Then  came  up  the  Ziphites  to 
Saul  to  Gibeah,  saying,  Doth  not  David  hide  himself 
with  us  in  the  strong  holds  in  the  wood,  in  the  hill 

20.  of  Hachilah,  which  is  on  the  south  of 'the  desert?  Now 
therefore,  O  king,  come  down,  according  to  all  the 
desire  of  thy  soul  to  come  down;  and  our  part  shall  be 

2 1.  to  deKver  him  up  into  the  king's  hand.  And  Saul  said. 
Blessed  be  ye  of  the  Lord;  for  ye  have  had  compassion 

22.  on  me.     Go,  I  pray  you,  make  yet  more  sure,  and 

18.  To  his  house  implies  that  Jonathan  had  left  his  home  to  seek 
David,  and  as  he  would  almost  certainly  be  with  the  forces  of  Saul, 
this  section  appears  out  of  place  in  its  context,  which  represents  Saul 
as  being  in  the  neighborhood  of  David's  retreat. 

Saul  pursues  David  in  the  wilderness,  vs.  19-29  [Heb.  24  :  iff.]. 
19.  Gibeah  shows  either  that  this  passage  is  unrelated  to  vs.  i-iS, 
or  that  Saul  had  given  up  the  pursuit  for  the  time  and  returned  home. 
The  story  implies  that  Saul  was  quite  ignorant  of  David's  where- 
abouts. The  Ziphites  were  disaffected  towards  David  or  saw  an  op- 
portimity  to  win  favor  from  Saul  by  betraying  a  fugitive.  In  the 
wood  or  Horesh,  cf.  on  v.  15.  The  Ziphites'  description  is  not  only  rep- 
etitious, but  contradictory,  as  in  the  strongholds  implies  that  David 
moved  from  one  desert  fastness  to  another.  If  the  informers  had  been 
able  to  locate  the  quarry  so  specifically,  Saul  would  not  need  to  urge 
them  to  find  his  haunts,  v.  22.  Hachilah  is  mentioned  only  here  and 
26  : 1-3.  In  the  latter  passage  it  appears  to  be  in  the  eastern  part  of 
the  desert  of  Judah,  here  in  the  south. 

20.  The  Ziphites  are  familiar  with  the  desert  region  and  assure  the 
king  that  they  will  track  the  fugitive  to  his  lair  if  Saul  will  follow 
with  a  sufficient  force  to  take  him. 

21.  Had  compassion,  cf.  22  :  8.  The  Ziphites  had  felt  the  peril  to 
Saul's  throne  and  imlike  his  own  tribesmen,  22:8,  were  ready  to  aid 
him  in  removing  the  danger. 

22.  Saul  had  found  it  impossible  to  catch  David  and  did  not  want 
to  be  led  on  another  fruitless  chase.  It  is  told  me  overlooks  the  fact 
that  Saul  himself  had  been  the  constant  pursuer  of  David,  and  would 
hardly  need  to  be  told  that  his  quarry  was  exceedingly  crafty. 

J87 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


know  and  see  his  place  where  his  haunt  is,  and  who 
hath  seen  him  there:  for  it  is  told  me  that  he  dealeth 

23.  very  subtilly.  See  therefore,  and  take  knowledge  of 
all  the  lurking  places  where  he  hideth  himself,  and 
come  ye  again  to  me  of  a  certainty,  and  I  will  go  with 
you:  and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  if  he  be  in  the  land,  that 
I  will  search  him  out  among  all  the  thousands  of 

24.  Judah.  And  they  arose,  and  went  to  Ziph  before  ^ 
Saul.  But  David  and  his  men  were  in  the  wilderness 
of  Maon,  in  the  Arabah  on  the  south  of  the  desert. 

25.  And  Saul  and  his  men  went  to  seek  him.  And  they 
told  David:  wherefore  he  came  down  to  the  rock,  and 
abode  in  the  wilderness  of  Maon.  And  when  Saul 
heard  that,  he  pursued  after  David  in  the  wilderness  of 

26.  Maon.    And  Saul  went  on  this  side  of  the  mountain, 


Or  in  advance  of. 


23.  The  expansion  of  the  instructions  is  largely  repetitious  of 
V.  22.  The  directions  imply  that  the  Ziphites  were  to  locate  David 
exactly  and  return  to  inform  Saul  who  would  then  go  with  them  to 
seek  him;  v.  24  implies  that  Saul  followed  them  immediately.  The 
matter  is  cleared  up  by  making  a  bold  change  in  the  text  translating 
at  Nakon  a  proper  name  in  2  Sam.  6  :  6,  instead  of  of  a  certainty 
both  here  and  in  26  : 4.  Saul  appoints  a  place  near  the  wilderness 
where  he  will  meet  the  Ziphites  after  they  have  secured  more  definite 
knowledge  of  David's  haunts.  Thousands  of  Judah  refers  to  the 
many  clans  which  made  up  the  tribe.  Saul  expresses  his  readiness 
to  traverse  the  whole  Judean  wilderness  once  he  is  on  David's  trail. 
Maon  is  a  hamlet  south  of  Carmel.  In  the  desert  about  this  town 
David  and  his  band  had  taken  refuge.  Arabah  is  the  Jordan  valley, 
extending  south  to  include  the  Dead  Sea. 

25.  And  abode,  with  G.  read:  which  is.  David  had  moved  upon 
hearing  of  Saul's  advance,  and  the  rock  or  crag,  presumably  a  rocky 
ridge,  marks  his  new  position. 

26.  Made  haste.  In  the  original  we  find  a  strong  word,  suggesting 
great  alarm  or  panic.  Compassed  is  doubtful.  The  word  is  rare, 
and  the  idea  of  being  surrounded  is  in  consistent  with  the  description 
of  the  hot  pursuit.     Some  phrase  like  pressed  hard  upon  is  more 

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and  David  and  his  men  on  that  side  of  the  mountain: 
and  David  made  haste  to  get  away  for  fear  of  Saul; 
for  Saul  and  his  men  compassed  David  and  his  men 

27.  round  about  to  take  them.  But  there  came  a  messen- 
ger unto  Saul,  saying,  Haste  thee,  and  come;  for  the 

28.  Phihstines  have  made  a  raid  upon  the  land.  So  Saul 
returned  from  pursuing  after  David,  and  went  against 
the  Phihstines:  therefore  they  called  that  place  Sela- 

29.  hammahlekoth.  And  David  went  up  from  thence,  and 
dwelt  in  the  strong  holds  of  Engedi. 

24.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Saul  was  returned  from 

following  the  Phihstines,  that  it  was  told  him,  saying, 

2.  Behold,  David  is  in  the  wilderness  of  En-gedi.    Then 

suitable.  It  is  clear  that  David  was  not  surrounded,  otherwise  Saul 
could  have  taken  him  without  serious  delay  to  his  departure  to  meet 
the  Philistines.  On  the  other  hand  it  appears  that  David's  band 
was  so  closely  pressed  that  escape  was  becoming  doubtful, 

27.  The  Philistines  held  most  of  the  land  of  Israel,  but  Saul  had 
a  small  area  in  which  his  people  were  free.  The  enemy  doubtless 
learned  that  he  was  far  away  with  all  of  his  armed  forces  and  so 
started  to  plunder  in  the  districts  of" Benjamin. 

28.  Sela-hammahlekoth  may  mean  rock  of  escape,  but  rock  of 
divisions  is  sounder  etymologically  and  in  better  accord  with  the 
conditions.  There  was  only  the  ridge  of  a  rocky  hill  dividing  David 
from  his  pursurers  when  Saul  was  called  away.    The  rock  is  that  of 

V.    25» 

29.  Having  found  traitors  in  this  neighborhood,  David  trans- 
ferred his  forces  to  En-gedi,  an  oasis  in  the  desert  bordering  on  the 
Dead  Sea,  His  new  haunts  are  in  the  same  general  territory,  be- 
cause it  was  sparsely  settled  and  abounded  in  places  difi&cult  of 
access. 

Chs.  24  and  26  are  accounts  of  essentially  the  same  events,  both 
ending  with  a  reconciliation  between  Saul  and  David,  cf.  Introd.  and 
ch.  26,  David  refuses  to  slay  Saul,  24  : 1-7.  i.  From  following  im- 
plies that  Saul  had  driven  the  raiding  Philistines  back  to  their  own 
borders;  probably  it  was  only  a  small  band,  c/.  23  :  27.  Wilderness 
of  En-gedi.  In  23  :  29  the  strongholds  of  En-gedi.  The  text  is  wrong 
in  one  place  or  the  other;  wilderness  is  perhaps  more  suitable. 

2.  Three  thousand  was  the  size  of  Saul's  army  at  the  beginning 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Saul  took  ^  three  thousand  chosen  men  out  of  all  Israel, 
and  went  to  seek  David  and  his  men  upon  the  rocks 

3.  of  the  wild  goats.  And  he  came  to  the  sheepcotes  by 
the  way,  where  was  a  cave;  and  Saul  went  in  to  cover 
his  feet.     Now  David  and  his  men  were  abiding  in 

4.  the  innermost  parts  of  the  cave.  And  the  men  of 
David  said  unto  him,  Behold,  the  day  of  which  the 
Lord  said  unto  thee.  Behold,  I  will  deliver  thine 
enemy  ^  into  thine  hand,  and  thou  shalt  do  to  him  as 
it  shall  seem  good  unto  thee.     Then  David  arose, 

5.  and  cut  off  the  skirt  of  Saul's  robe  privily.    And  it 

J  G.  adds  with  him  *  go  G.  has  enemies. 

of  his  reign,  13  :  2.  As  David  had  at  most  six  hundred  men,  Saul 
was  taking  no  chances.  Still  to  catch  David  he  needed  a  force  big 
enough  to  divide  and  yet  leave  each  part  strong  enough  to  cope 
with  David's  hardy  band  of  desperadoes.  Upon  or  probably  to  the 
east  of  (Driver) .  Wild  goats  still  abound  in  the  region,  but  the  exact 
spot  cannot  be  located.  It  was  some  rocky  ridge  upon  which  the 
goats  habitually  gathered.    It  was  evidently  a  wild  region. 

3.  Sheep  cotes,  literally  walls  of  the  flock,  may  have  been  caves  as 
Smith  suggests,  but  as  a  cave  is  particularly  mentioned,  it  is  more 
natural  here  to  think  of  fenced  enclosures.  The  sheepfolds  indicate 
the  place  to  which  the  nomads  brought  their  flocks  from  the  scattered 
grazing  lands.  To  cover  his  feet  is  a  euphemism  which  occurs  in 
Judg.  3  :  24  (of  Eglon  the  king  of  Moab).  The  figure  comes  from  the 
posture.  Now  suitably  introduces  a  circumstantial  clause.  Abiding, 
better  siting.  It  is  probable  that  as  Saul's  forces  approached,  instead 
of  flight  David  chose  to  risk  hiding  in  a  deep  cave,  where  in  case  of 
discovery  a  few  could  defend  themselves  against  superior  numbers. 

4.  The  men  quote  an  oracle  of  which  there  is  no  record.  The 
Hebrew  enemies  suggests  that  it  was  a  general  promise  which  the 
men  apply  to  an  individual.  Privily,  so  that  Saul  did  not  detect 
the  action.  To  accompHsh  such  a  feat  David  was  able  to  move  and 
act  most  stealthily.  David  evidently  had  formulated  his  whole  plan, 
but  he  as  yet  says  nothing  to  his  men.  Doubtless  they  had  expected 
him  as  he  advanced  to  slay  the  king. 

5.  David's  act  was  a  serious  affront  to  the  majesty  of  a  king; 
cf.  2  Sam.  10  : 4  where  a  similar  act  even  to  ambassadors  is  made 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


came  to  pass  afterward,  that  David's  heart  smote 
him,  because  he  had  cut  off  Saul's  skirt.    And  he  said 

6.  unto  his  men,  The  Lord  forbid  that  I  should  do  this 
thing  unto  my  lord,^  the  Lord's  anointed,  to  put  forth 
mine   hand   against   him,   seeing  he   is   the  Lord's 

7.  anointed.  So  David  checked  his  men  with  these 
words,  and  suffered  them  not  to  rise  against  Saul. 
And  Saul  rose  up  out  of  the  cave,  and  went  on  his 

8.  way.  David  also  arose  afterward,^  and  went  out  of 
the  cave,  and  cried  after  Saul,  saying.  My  lord  the 
king.  And  when  Saul  looked  behind  him,  David 
bowed  with  his  face  to  the  earth,  and  did  obeisance. 

1  Omitted  in  GB.  2  G.  after  him. 

a  casus  belli.    David  had  never  before  committed  a  hostile  act  against 
the  king. 

6.  David's  statement  is  not  an  expression  of  regret  because  he 
has  mutilated  Saul's  robes,  but  a  reply  to  the  suggestion  of  his  men, 
V.  4.  The  men  see  an  opportunity  to  end  their  troubles;  David 
declines  to  take  it  because  he  is  unwilling  to  slay  the  anointed  of 
Jahveh.  Evidently  this  source  knows  nothing  of  the  anointing 
of  David. 

7.  Checked  represents  G.;  the  Hebrew  has  tore  in  two,  too  strong 
a  word  and  unsuitable  to  the  means,  i.  e.,  words.  Suffered  not  mdi- 
cates  that  the  men  were  minded  to  rid  themselves  of  an  inveterate  foe, 
but  that  David  would  not  consent.  G.  makes  the  purpose  plain  read- 
ing: would  not  permit  them  to  arise  and  kill  Saul.  At  this  point  vs.  4,  5 
would  be  more  appropriate  than  where  they  are.  The  order  of  events 
would  thus  be;  the  men  point  out  the  divinely  given  opportunity; 
David  refuses  to  strike  Jahveh's  anointed;  the  men,  having  no 
such  scruples,  themselves  prepare  to  slay  Saul;  David  restrains  them, 
and  then  cuts  off  Saul's  robe  as  evidence  that  the  king  was  at  his 
mercy. 

Saul  is  convinced  of  David's  magnanimity  and  makes  peace  with 
him,  vs.  8-23.  8.  Obeisance.  The  act  was  the  usual  homage  to  a 
person  in  a  superior  position.  David  prostrates  himself  when  Saul 
sees  him  as  an  evidence  of  his  recognition  of  Saul's  royalty.  In 
this  story  David  deliberately  puts  himself  in  Saul's  power. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


9.  And  David  said  to  Saul,  Wherefore  hearkenest  thou 
to  men's  words/  saying,  Behold,  David  seeketh  thy 

10.  hurt?  ^  Behold,  this  day  thine  eyes  have  seen  how 
that  the  Lord  had  delivered  thee  to-day  into  mine 
hand  in  the  cave:  and  some  bade  me  kill  thee:  but 
mine  eye  spared  thee;  ^  and  I  said,  I  will  not  put  forth 
mine  hand  against  my  lord;  for  he  is  the  Lord's 

11.  anointed.  Moreover,  my  father,  see,  yea,  see  the 
skirt  of  thy  robe  in  my  hand:  for  in  that  I  cut  off  the 
skirt  of  thy  robe,  and  killed  thee  not,  know  thou  and 
see  that  there  is  neither  evil  nor  transgression  in  mine 
hand,  and  I  have  not  sinned  against  thee,  though 

12.  thou  huntest  after  my  soul  ^  to  take  it.    The  Lord 

1  G.  words  of  the  people.       2  g.  thy  life.       sQ.andl  spared  thee.       •»  Better  life. 

9.  It  appears  to  be  David's  conviction  that  he  is  the  victim  of 
false  charges,  somebody  having  accused  him  of  aiming  at  Saul's 
life.  Yet  David's  idea  is  quite  contrary  to  the  origin  of  Saul's  hos- 
tility as  our  sources  reveal  it.  There  is  no  record  of  any  charge  against 
David. 

10.  Have  seen  is  unsuitable.  David's  act  was  so  stealthy  that 
Saul  did  not  detect  it.  We  should  have  shall  see,  i.  e.,  when  the  evi- 
dence of  Saul's  danger  is  disclosed,  v.  1 1 .  Some  bade  me  would  refer 
to  the  counsel  of  his  men.  G.  reads:  bid  I  refuse  to  slay  thee,  as  26  :  23, 
which  is  good  in  itself,  but  tautologous  before  and  I  spared  thee. 
It  is  tempting  to  interpret  as  Budde :  Jahveh  delivered  thee  .  .  .  and 
bade  7ne  slay  thee;  but  I  spared  thee.  By  putting  Saul  in  David's  power, 
Jahveh  incites  David  to  slay,  even  as  his  men  suggested.  But  even 
when  God  offered  him  the  life  of  Saul,  David  could  not  lift  his  hand 
against  the  anointed  of  Jahveh.  David's  position  towards  Saul  is 
quite  different  from  Samuel's. 

11.  My  father  is  in  G.  attached  to  v.  lo,  the  Lord's  anointed  and 
my  father,  i.  e.,  fny  king.  David  thus  professing  his  loyalty  to  Saul. 
Himtest  makes  good  sense,  but  the  Hebrew  means  liest  in  wait, 
indicating  that  Saul  was  disposing  his  men  to  trap  the  fugitive.  G. 
reads,  harass. 

12.  Avenge  refers  to  the  wrong  Saul  has  done  to  David,  and  makes 
the  latter  look  for  divine  punishment.  David  does  not  cherish  such 
feelings  and  we  might  perhaps  render,  vindicate.    David's  words  fit 

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judge  between  me  and  thee,  and  the  Lord  avenge  me 

13.  of  thee:  but  mine  hand  shall  not  be  upon  thee.  As 
saith  the  proverb  of  the  ancients,  Out  of  the  wicked 
Cometh  forth  wickedness:  but  mine  hand  shall  not  be 

14.  upon  thee.  After  whom  is  the  king  of  Israel  come  out? 
after  whom  dost  thou  pursue?  after  a  dead  dog,  after 

15.  a  flea.  The  Lord  therefore  be  judge,  and  give  sen- 
tence between  me  and  thee,  and  see,  and  plead  my 

16.  cause,  and  deliver  me  out  of  thine  hand.  And  it 
came  to  pass,  when  David  had  made  an  end  of  speaking 
these  words  unto  Saul,  that  Saul  said.  Is  this  thy 
voice,  my  son  David?  ^    And  Saul  lifted  up  his  voice, 

17.  and  wept.  And  he  said  to  David,  Thou  art  more 
righteous  than  I:  for  thou  hast  rendered  unto  me  good, 

18.  whereas  I  have  rendered  unto  thee  evil.  And  thou 
hast  declared  this  day  how  that  thou  hast  dealt  well 
with  me:  forasmuch  as  when  the  Lord  had  delivered 

*  G.  adds:  and  David  said,  it  is  thy  servant;  my  lord  the  king,  cf.  26  :  17. 

well  Budde's  interpretation  of  v.  10.  He  will  not  seize  the  opening 
which  Jahveh  has  made,  but  leaves  his  case  in  Jahveh's  own  hands 
to  work  it  out  as  he  will.    The  idea  is  repeated  in  v.  15. 

13.  This  verse  is  usually  regarded  as  an  interpolation.  It  would 
mean  that  as  wickedness  comes  from  the  wicked,  and  as  David 
would  do  no  wrong,  he  cannot  be  wicked. 

14.  Dead  dog  and  flea  indicate  the  insignificance  of  the  quarry. 
It  is  unworthy  of  the  king  of  Israel  to  expend  his  energy  in  pursuit, 
not  of  a  menacing  rival,  but  of  a  humble  and  powerless  individual. 
David  has  in  mind  his  lowly  origin,  cf.  18  :  18,  23,  and  his  present 
straits,  being  utterly  unable  to  do  other  than  hide  and  flee. 

16.  My  son  is  a  recognition  on  Saul's  part  of  the  loyalty  of  David; 
it  corresponds  to  my  father,  v.  11.  Wept.  Saul  was  very  emotional, 
a  trait  enhanced  by  his  mental  infirmity.  The  familiar  voice  and 
the  evidence  of  magnanimity  move  the  king  to  tears.  The  strong 
emotions  of  the  king  show  that  he  had  once  loved  David  greatly. 

17.  Saul's  acknowledgment  is  emphatic:  David  requited  him  good 
for  evil,  while  he  had  requited  David  evil  for  good. 

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24:19  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


19.  me  up  into  thine  hand,  thou  killedst  me  not.  For  if 
a  man  find  his  enemy,  will  he  let  him  go  well  away? 
wherefore  the  Lord  reward  thee  good  for  that  thou 

20.  hast  done  unto  me  this  day.  And  now,  behold,  I 
know  that  thou  shalt  surely  be  king,  and  that  the  king- 

2 1 .  dom  of  Israel  shall  be  established  in  thine  hand.  Swear 
now  therefore  unto  me  by  the  Lord,  that  thou  wilt 
not  cut  off  my  seed  after  me,  and  that  thou  wilt  not 

22.  destroy  my  name  out  of  my  father's  house.  And 
David  sware  unto  Saul.  And  Saul  went  home;  but 
David  and  his  men  gat  them  up  unto  the  hold. 

25.  And  Samuel  died;  and  all  Israel  gathered  themselves 
together,  and  lamented  him,  and  buried  him  in  his 
house  at  Ramah.  And  David  arose,  and  went  down 
to  the  wilderness  of  Paran.^ 

1  G.  Maon  as  v.  2. 

19.  His  enemy.  The  fact  that  David  had  not  slain  Saul  when  he 
had  the  chance  proves  to  Saul  that  David  does  not  regard  him  as  a 
foe.    Saul  cannot  conceive  of  any  one's  letting  an  enemy  escape. 

20-22.  This  passage  recognizes  David's  destiny  as  the  successor 
of  Saul,  and  Saul  contents  himself  with  exacting  an  oath  from  David 
that  he  would  not  follow  the  usual  course  of  putting  to  death  the 
family  of  the  overthrown  king.  If  David  took  such  an  oath  he  cer- 
tainly did  not  keep  it,  2  Sam.  21  :  7-9.  Budde  deems  the  section 
an  insertion  from  a  later  hand.  The  story  ends  by  Saul's  withdrawing 
from  the  pursuit  of  David,  while  the  latter  remains  in  the  wild  lands 
of  Judah.  The  reconciliation  is  incomplete,  otherwise  David  would 
have  returned  to  his  place  at  Saul's  court. 

David  lays  tribute  upon  the  clans  of  the  wilderness,  ch.  25. 
There  is  no  reason  to  question  the  authenticity  of  this  story, 
but  it  seems  to  be  out  of  place,  for  David's  resolve  to  leave 
Judah,  ch.  27,  would  naturally  follow  his  close  escape  from  Saul, 
23  :  19-29.  Perhaps  this  passage  belongs  before  23  :  19-29.  la. 
This  statement  belongs  to  the  life  of  Samuel,  cf.  the  duplicate 
in  28  : 3  where  at  least  it  is  appropriate.  That  such  a  fragment 
could  have  slipped  in  here  shows  what  changes  have  been  wrought 
in  the  sacred  texts.    Paran  is  in  the  far  southern  part  of  the  Judean 

194 


THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF   SAMUEL  25:6 

2.  And  there  was  a  man  in  Maon,  whose  possessions  were 
in  Carmel;  and  the  man  was  very  great,  and  he  had 
three  thousand  sheep,  and  a  thousand  goats:  and  he 

3.  was  shearing  his  sheep  in  Carmel.  Now  the  name  of 
the  man  was  Nabal;  and  the  name  of  his  wife  Abigail: 
and  the  woman  was  of  good  understanding,  and  of  a 
beautiful  countenance:  but  the  man  was  churHsh  and 
evil  in  his  doings;  and  he  was  of  the  house  of  Caleb. 

4.  And  David  heard  in  the  wilderness  that  Nabal  did 

5.  shear  his  sheep.  And  David  sent  ten  young  men, 
and  David  said  unto  the  young  men.  Get  you  up  to 
Carmel,  and  go  to  Nabal,  and  greet  him  in  my  name: 

6.  and  thus  shall  ye  say  to  him  that  liveth  in  prosperity ^ 

Dead  Sea  coast.  It  is  difficult  to  make  a  connection  for  David's 
movement,  but  he  probably  moved  about  a  good  deal  during  this 
period  of  life  in  the  wilderness. 

David  is  about  to  destroy  Nabal  because  he  had  refused  tribute, 
vs.  2-13.  2.  Maon,  23  :  24,  was  near  Carmel  and  both  were  close  to 
Ziph,  23  :  19  ff.,  26.  The  region  supported  only  one  industry  and  so 
Nabal's  wealth,  like  Job's,  consisted  of  large  flocks.  Great  means 
rich,  as  in  Job,  1:3. 

3.  The  characteristics  of  Nabal  and  his  wife  are  sharply  contrasted, 
the  descriptions  being  based  on  this  story.  Chtirlish.  The  Hebrew 
word  means  hard,  severe,  and  so  perhaps  niggardly.  Caleb  was  the 
leader  of  the  clan  which  had  first  taken  Hebron,  Josh.  15  :  13  ff. 
The  Calebites  had  evidently  overspread  the  region  to  the  south  of 
Hebron.  Caleb  means  dog  and  G.  has  rendered  here  not  infelici- 
tously  dog-like. 

5.  Ten  were  sent  so  as  to  have  an  adequate  force  to  bring  back 
the  supplies  which  Nabal  was  expected  to  hand  over.  The  shearing 
season  is  the  harvest  of  the  shepherds,  and  at  such  a  time  a  tribute 
would  naturally  be  forthcoming.  Greet  is  literally  ask  him  of  welfare 
In  my  name  indicates  that  David  had  won  at  least  a  local  reputation, 
and  that  he  was  exercising  a  certain  authority  in  the  desert  region. 

6.  To  him  that  liveth  in  prosperity  is  a  big  rendering  of  a  single 
Hebrew  word  of  three  letters,  the  true  significance  of  which  no  man 
knows  to  this  day.  Wellhausen's  To  my  brother  is  approved  by  many; 
but  to  him  is  all  that  is  needed.    The  following  is  best  rendered  as 

19s 


25:7  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Peace  be  both  unto  thee,  and  peace  be  to  thine  house, 

7.  and  peace  be  unto  all  that  thou  hast.  And  now  I 
have  heard  that  thou  hast  shearers:  thy  shepherds 
have  now  been  with  us/  and  we  did  them  no  hurt, 
neither  was  there  aught  missing  unto  them,  all  the 

8.  while  they  were  in  Carmel.  Ask  thy  young  men, 
and  they  will  tell  thee:  wherefore  let  the  young  men 
find  favour  in  thine  eyes;  for  we  come  in  a  good  day: 
give,  I  pray  thee,  whatsoever  cometh  to  thine  hand, 

9.  unto  thy  servants,  and  to  thy  son  David.    And  when 

1  G.  adds  in  the  wilderness. 

an  affirmation :  now  thou  and  thy  household  and  all  that  thoti  hast  are  in 
peace.  David's  protection  has  secured  peace  for  Nabal's  herds,  and 
David  hints  that  a  return  is  due  to  him. 

7.  Did  them  no  hurt  or  put  them  to  no  shame  by  plundering  them 
and  so  obliging  them  to  make  a  shameful  report  of  a  shortage  in  the 
flock.  And  David  had  gone  further:  he  had  not  permitted  the  raiders 
of  the  desert  to  exercise  their  usual  practice  of  robbing  the  shepherds. 
On  the  ground  that  he  had  thus  afforded  protection,  he  demands 
tribute.    David  acts  as  a  ruler  dealing  with  his  subjects. 

8.  The  young  men,  G.  thy  young  men,  making  them  David's  mes- 
sengers in  both  cases,  and  contrary  to  Budde,  this  seems  to  me  right. 
David  proposes  that  Nabal  shall  question  his  men,  who  were  with 
him  in  the  field,  for  confirmation  of  the  protection  he  had  afforded 
Nabal's  flocks.  David  would  not  dream  that  their  word  could  be 
doubted.  Good  day  in  late  usage  is  a  phrase  meaning  a  festival, 
Esth.  8:17;  here  perhaps  the  idea  \?>  favorable,  a  day  when  one  would 
expect  to  find  Nabal  gracious.  Thy  servants,  etc.,  is  surely  wrong. 
Most  writers  are  content  to  follow  G.,  omitting  thy  servants  and  to. 
What  we  should  have  is:  unto  thy  servant  David,  the  son  of  Jesse. 
Nabal  names  the  son  of  Jesse  in  his  reply,  therefore  it  must  have  been 
in  the  address.  David  was  demanding,  not  begging,  and  he  would 
never  have  said  thy  son.  He  was  not  asking  gifts  for  his  messengers, 
but  for  himself  as  chief. 

9.  And  ceased  is  a  crux.  Budde  thinks  it  means  that  the  messen- 
gers added  nothing  to  the  words  David  had  put  in  their  mouths. 
Nowack  renders  and  they  waited.  As  Nabal  was  angry  they  would 
not  have  to  linger  long.  Smith  suggests  rested,  as  the  men  were 
weary  from  the  journey.    Messengers  do  not  deliver  their  message, 

196 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  25:14 


David's  young  men  came,  they  spake  to  Nabal  accord- 
ing to  all  those  words  in  the  name  of  David,  and 

10.  ceased.  And  Nabal  answered  David's  servants,  and 
said.  Who  is  David?  and  who  is  the  son  of  Jesse? 
there  be  many  servants  now  a  days  that  break  away 

11.  every  man  from  his  master.  Shall  I  then  take  my 
bread,  and  my  water, ^  and  my  flesh  that  I  have  killed 
for  my  shearers,  and  give  it  unto  men  of  whom  I 

12.  know  not  whence  they  be?  So  David's  young  men 
turned  on  their  way,  and  went  back,  and  came  and 

13.  told  him  according  to  all  these  words.  And  David 
said  unto  his  men.  Gird  ye  on  every  man  his  sword. 
^  And  they  girded  on  every  man  his  sword;  and  David 
also  girded  on  his  sword:  ^  and  there  went  up  after 
David  about  four  hundred  men;  and  two  hundred 

14.  abode  by  the  stuff.    But  one  of  the  young  men  told 

1  G.  rightly  wine,  cf.  v.  28.  2  Omit,  G. 

and  then  lie  down  to  rest  while  an  answer  is  composed.  G.  gives 
excellent  sense,  having  another  word  and  another  construction :  and 
Nabal  sprang  to  his  feet  and  answered,  his  action  indicating  the  feel- 
ings expressed  in  his  words. 

10.  Servants,  really  slaves.  The  taunt  was  true  of  many  of  David's 
men;  probably  there  is  a  reference  to  David's  being  a  fugitive  from 
Saul. 

11.  Whence  they  be  appears  to  be  an  attempt  to  answer  David's 
claim  that  he  was  entitled  to  suppKes  because  he  had  protected  the 
shepherds. 

13.  Every  man  his  sword.  David  was  quick  in  his  determination 
to  wreak  a  terrible  vengeance  on  Nabal.  He  assumes  that  it  was 
his  right  to  collect  tribute,  and  he  prepares  to  make  Nabal  an  impres- 
sive example.  Two  hundred  were  left  to  guard  the  camp,  as  in  30  :  24 
where  presumably  there  were  stores  collected  from  other  shepherds. 

Abigail  appeases  David,  vs.  14-35.  i4-  David.  The  speaker  was 
one  of  those  who  had  been  with  the  flock  in  the  wilderness,  and  he 
refers  to  David  as  a  person  well  known  to  Abigail.    Flew  upon  them, 

197 


25:15  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Abigail,  Nabal's  wife,   saying.   Behold,   David  sent 
messengers  out  of  the  wilderness  to  salute  our  master; 

15.  and  he  flew  upon  them.  But  the  men  were  very  good 
unto  us,  and  we  were  not  hurt,  neither  missed  we  any 
thing,  as  long  as  we  were  conversant  with  them,  when 

16.  we  were  in  the  fields:  they  were  a  wall  unto  us  both 
by  night  and  by  day,  all  the  while  we  were  with  them 

17.  keeping  the  sheep.  Now  therefore  know  and  con- 
sider what  thou  wilt  do;  for  evil  is  determined  against 
our  master,  and  against  all  his  house:  for  he  is  such 

18.  a  son  of  Belial,  that  one  cannot  speak  to  him.  Then 
Abigail  made  haste,  and  took  two  hundred  loaves,  and 
two  bottles  of  wine,  and  five  sheep  ready  dressed, 
and  five  measures  of  parched  corn,  and  an  hundred 
clusters  of  raisins,  and  two  hundred  cakes  of  figs,  and 

19.  laid  them  on  asses.  And  she  said  unto  her  young 
men,  Go  on  before  me;  behold,  I  come  after  you.    But 

cj.  14  :  32,  is  not  happy  here.   B.D.B.  gives  a  suitable  sense  screamed 
at  them. 

15  f.  Nabal's  shepherds  confirm  David's  protection,  which  had  been 
the  basis  of  his  claim  for  spoils,  v.  7.  Fields,  the  wild  lands  where 
pasture  was  found.  Wall  suggests  protection  from  the  Bedouin 
marauders. 

17.  All  his  house.  The  servant  knows  how  David  maintains 
himself,  that  he  will  not  endure  Nabal's  refusal  to  pay,  and  especially 
that  once  the  sword  is  drawn  Nabal's  whole  establishment  will  be 
wiped  out.  Cannot  speak.  The  appeal  is  made  to  Abigail,  for 
Nabal  is  so  violent  that  no  one  dares  try  to  persuade  him  of  his  duty. 

18.  Two  hundred  loaves,  cj.,  the  five  loaves  David  asked  for  at 
Nob,  21:3.  Two  bottles  woiild  be  a  modest  allowance  for  600  men. 
so  we  should  render  correctly  two  skins.  The  skin  held  several  gallons. 
Five  measures  or  seahs  is  nearly  two  bushels.  The  supplies  taken  by 
Abigail  make  a  very  substantial  offering  suitable  to  the  size  of  David's 
company. 

19.  Go  on  before  me,  with  the  asses  carrying  the  provisions,  which 
she  could  easily  overtake.    That  she  was  able  to  collect  and  despatch 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  25:24 


20.  she  told  not  her  husband  Nabal.  And  it  was  so,  as 
she  rode  on  her  ass,  and  came  down  by  the  covert  of 
the  mountain,  that,  behold,  David  and  his  men  came 

21.  down  against  her;  and  she  met  them.  Now  David 
had  said,  Surely  in  vain  have  I  kept  all  that  this  fellow 
hath  in  the  wilderness,  so  that  nothing  was  missed  of 
all  that  pertained  unto  him:  and  he  hath  returned  me 

22.  evil  for  good.  God  do  so  unto  the  enemies  of  David, 
and  more  also,  if  I  leave  of  all  that  pertain  to  him  by 

23.  the  morning  light  so  much  as  one  man  child.  And 
when  Abigail  saw  David,  she  hasted,  and  lighted  off 
her  ass,  and  fell  before  David  on  her  face,  and  bowed 

24.  herseK  to  the  ground.  And  she  fell  at  his  feet,  and 
said,  Upon  me,  my  lord,  upon  me  be  the  iniquity: 

so  large  a  train  secretly  indicates  that  Nabal  was  away  with  his 
shearers. 

20.  The  meaning  seems  to  be  that  Abigail  was  riding  in  a  path 
so  that  she  was  screened,  and  so  did  not  know  of  David's  approach 
until  she  encountered  him  in  the  trail. 

21.  It  is  not  clear  when  David  said  this,  but  it  would  natiarally 
be  when  he  mustered  his  forces  for  the  attack.  EvU  for  good,  an 
insult  as  a  reward  for  very  useful  protection  from  robbers. 

22  f.  With  G.  omit  the  enemies  of,  to  conform  to  the  usual  impre- 
cation. Child  is  misleading.  The  to  our  ears  indecent  expression  in 
the  original  means  a  male,  and  David  is  certainly  thinkmg  chiefly 
of  adults.  Some  writers  render,  euen  a  dog.  Bowed  herself.  Abigail 
takes  the  attitude  of  a  suppliant  asking  a  favor. 

Abigail  makes  a  long  speech  to  David  pleading  that  he  will  accept 
her  peace-offering  and  forbear  to  take  vengeance,  vs.  24-31.  The 
points  she  urges  are:  i.  The  fault  should  be  placed  upon  her,  not  be- 
cause she  was  in  the  wrong,  but  so  that  she  can  make  atonement.  Per- 
haps also  she  beheved  David  would  not  be  so  severe  with  a  beautiful 
woman.  2.  Nabal  is  of  such  a  character  that  he  is  irresponsible,  and 
Abigail  did  not  know  of  David's  request  until  his  messengers  had  de- 
parted. 3.  By  accepting  her  offering  for  tribute,  and  overlooking 
Nabal's  refusal,  David  would  be  spared  the  shedding  of  blood.  4.  She 
seeks  to  mollify  David  by  assertions  of  his  valor  and  forecasts  of  his 
greatness. 

199 


25:25  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


and  let  thine  handmaid,  I  pray  thee,  speak  in  thine 

25.  ears,  and  hear  thou  the  words  of  thine  handmaid.  Let 
not  my  lord,  I  pray  thee,  regard  this  man  of  Belial, 
even  Nabal:  ^  for  as  his  name  is,  so  is  he;  Nabal  is 
his  name,  and  folly  is  with  him:  but  I  thine  hand- 
maid saw  not  the  young  men  of  my  lord,  whom  thou 

26.  didst  send.  Now  therefore,  my  lord,  as  the  Lord 
Hveth,  and  as  thy  soul  liveth,  seeing  the  Lord  hath 
withholden  thee  from  bloodguiltiness,  and  from 
avenging  thyself  with  thine  own  hand,  now  therefore 
let  thine  enemies,  and  them  that  seek  evil  to  my  lord, 

27.  be  as  Nabal.  And  now  ^  this  present  which  thy 
servant  hath  brought  unto  my  lord,  let  it  be  given  unto 

28.  the  young  men  that  follow  my  lord.  Forgive,  I  pray 
thee,  the  trespass  of  thine  handmaid:  for  the  Lord 
will  certainly  make  my  lord  a  sure  house,  because  my 
lord  fighteth  the  battles  of  the  Lord;  and  evil  shall 

29.  not  be  found  in  thee  all  thy  days.    And  though  man 

lOmit,  G.  ^  G.  adds:  take. 

25.  Nabal  means  fool,  one  deficient  in  understanding.  Saw  not, 
otlierwise  the  men  would  not  have  been  sent  away  empty. 

26.  Bloodguiltiness  is  literally /row  entering  into  blood  to  which  G. 
adds  correctly  innocent  as  in  vs.  31  f.  Avenging  or  delivering,  cf.  note 
on  V.  3 1 .  Them  that  seek.  G.  has  him  that  seeketh  limiting  the  refer- 
ence to  Saul. 

27.  Unto  the  young  men,  either  to  carry  back  to  camp,  or  with  the 
flattering  implication  that  her  tribute  is  not  really  worthy  the  great 
leader's  personal  acceptance. 

28.  Sure  house  points  to  the  royalty  of  David's  family  and  indi- 
cates a  late  hand,  which  has  elaborated  Abigail's  speech.  All  thy 
days,  ]itera.\\y  from  thy  days,  i.  e.,  si7ice  thy  birth.  The  reference  is  to 
the  past,  cf.  1  Kings  i  :  6,  and  the  verb  should  be  in  the  past  tense. 
David's  future  is  based  on  the  fact  that  in  the  past  he  has  done  no 
evil. 

29.  Bimdle  of  life  or  better  of  the  living,  occurs  only  here.    The 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  25:33 


be  risen  up  to  pursue  thee,  and  to  seek  thy  soul/  yet 
the  soul  ^  of  my  lord  shall  be  bound  in  the  bundle  of 
Ufe  with  the  Lord  thy  God;  and  the  souls  ^  of  thine 
enemies,  them  shall  he  sUng  out,  as  from  the  hoUow 

30.  of  a  sUng.  And  it  shaU  come  to  pass,  when  the  Lord 
shall  have  done  to  my  lord  according  to  all  the  good 
that  he  hath  spoken  concerning  thee,  and  shall  have 

31.  appointed  thee  prince  over  Israel;  that  this  shall  be 
no  grief  unto  thee,  nor  offence  of  heart  ^  unto  my  lord, 
either  that  thou  hast  shed  blood  causeless,  or  that  my 
lord  hath  avenged  himself:  and  when  the  Lord  shall 
have  dealt  well  with  my  lord,  then  remember  thine 

32.  handmaid.^  And  David  said  to  Abigail,  Blessed  be 
the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel,  which  sent  thee  this  day 

33.  to  meet  me:  and  blessed  be  thy  wisdom,  and  blessed 
be  thou,  which  hast  kept  me  this  day  from  blood- 
guiltiness,  and  from  avenging  myself  with  mine  own 

1  Better  life.  2  Better  lives.  =»  Omit,  G.  ■»  G.  adds  to  do  her  good. 

idea  is  that  Jahveh  will  bind  David's  life  in  the  bundle  of  the  living, 
as  the  spears  of  grain  are  bound  for  preservation.  The  book  of  the  liv- 
ing, Ps  69  :  28;  Phil.  4  : 3;  Rev.  13  : 8;  20  :  15,  is  the  later  conception  of 
the  same  idea.  As  from,  correctly  in.  The  idea  is  that  the  hfe  of  the 
enemy  would  be  placed  in  the  hollow  of  the  sUng  hke  a  stone  and  cast 

awav  •     i 

30.  The  hand  of  a  writer  who  was  familiar  with  16  : 1-13  is  shown 

^i  Grief,  literally  tottering  and  so  m  harmony  with  stumhling= 
offence.  In  both  cases  the  words  are  used  figuratively  expressmg 
qualms  of  conscience.  Avenged  is  an  imwarranted  hberty  m  trans- 
lating, as  the  word  means  deliver.  Supplying  hand  from  G.  we  have: 
that  the  hand  of  my  lord  has  delivered  him;  see  v.  2,2>'  t\     -a 

Abigail  becomes  David's  wife,  vs.  32-42.  32-  Sent  thee.  David 
regards  Abigail's  discreet  action  as  a  divine  interposition  to  keep  his 
hands  from  sheddmg  blood.  Therefore  Jahveh  has  restrained 
David  from  hurting  Abigail,  v.  34,  by  wipmg  out  the  house  of  her 
husband. 

201 


25:34  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


34.  hand.  For  in  very  deed,  as  the  Lord,  the  God  of 
Israel,  liveth,  which  hath  withholden  me  from  hurting 
thee,  except  thou  hadst  hasted  and  come  to  meet  me, 
surely  there  had  not  been  left  unto  Nabal  by  the  mom- 

35.  ing  Hght  so  much  as  one  man  child.  So  David  received 
of  her  hand  that  which  she  had  brought  him:  and  be 
said  unto  her.  Go  up  in  peace  to  thine  house;  see,  I 
have  hearkened  to  thy  voice,  and  have  accepted  thy 

36.  person.  And  Abigail  came  to  Nabal;  and,  behold, 
he  held  a  feast  in  his  house,  Uke  the  feast  of  a  king; 
and  Nabal's  heart  was  merry  within  him,  for  he  was 
very  drunken:  wherefore  she  told  him  nothing,  less  or 

37.  more,  until  the  morning  Hght.  And  it  came  to  pass 
in  the  morning,  when  the  wine  was  gone  out  of  Nabal, 
that  his  wife  told  him  these  things,  and  his  heart  died 

38.  within  him,  and  he  became  as  a  stone.  And  it  came 
to  pass  about  ten  days  after,  that  the  Lord  smote 

39.  Nabal,  that  he  died.      And  when  David  heard  that 


35.  Accepted  thy  person  is  literally  lifted  up  thy  face,  cf.,  why  is 
thy  face  fallen?  Gen.  4:6.  Abigail  was  downcast,  and  now  David 
removes  the  cause  of  her  distress  so  that  she  can  look  up  again. 

36.  Drunken.  Such  a  condition  was  all  too  common  at  feasts, 
even  at  those  that  were  sacred,  i  :  14,  i  Cor.  11  :  21.  Because  of  his 
condition,  Nabal  was  not  in  a  condition  to  profit  by  the  sharp  lesson 
which  his  wife  is  prepared  to  teach  him. 

37.  When  the  wine  was  gone  out  of  Nabal:  G.  has:  when  Nahal 
was  recovered  from  {the  e feels  of]  the  wine.  Both  expressions  mean 
when  he  was  sober.  Died.  i.  e.,  ceased  to  beat.  The  description  in- 
dicates a  stroke  of  paralysis,  brought  on  by  the  shock  of  learning  the 
peril  from  which  he  had  barely  escaped,  the  scare  coming  at  a  time 
when  his  vitality  was  low  by  reason  of  his  debauch.  He  lingered 
ten  days  and  then  died.  The  writer  who  sees  the  hand  of  God  in 
every  event,  regards  Nabal's  death  as  a  just  penalty  from  Jahveh. 

39.  David  puts  the  same  construction  upon  the  tragedy.  Concern- 
ing or  with.     The  statement  siunmarizes  the  details  given  in  v.  40. 

202 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Nabal  was  dead,  he  said.  Blessed  be  the  Lord,  that 
hath  pleaded  the  cause  of  my  reproach  from  the  hand 
of  Nabal,  and  hath  kept  back  his  servant  from  evil: 
and  the  evil-doing  of  Nabal  hath  the  Lord  returned 
upon  his  own  head.    And  David  sent  and  spake  con- 

40.  cerning  Abigail,  to  take  her  to  him  to  wife.  And 
when  the  servants  of  David  were  come  to  Abigail  to 
Carmel,  they  spake  unto  her,  saying,  David  hath  sent 

41.  us  unto  thee,  to  take  thee  to  him  to  wife.  And  she 
arose,  and  bowed  herself  with  her  face  to  the  earth, 
and  said.  Behold,  thine  handmaid  is  a  servant  to 

42.  wash  the  feet  of  the  servants  of  my  lord.  And  Abigail 
hasted,  and  arose,  and  rode  upon  an  ass,  with  five 
damsels  of  hers  that  followed  her;  and  she  went  after 

43.  the  messengers  of  David,  and  became  his  wife.  David 
also  took  Ahinoam  of  Jezreel;  and  they  became  both 

44.  of  them  his  wives.  Now  Saul  had  given  Michal  his 
daughter,  David's  wife,  to  Palti  the  son  of  Laish, 
which  was  of  Gallim. 

26.  And  the  Ziphites  came  unto  Saul  to  Gibeah,  saying, 

The  immediate  marriage  of  a  widow  was  unobjectionable  in  Old 
Testament  times,  2  Sam.  11  :  27,  and  is  still  common  in  the  Orient. 

41  f.  Such  protestations  of  humiHty  were  not  unconmion.  With 
five  damsels  conveys  a  wrong  impression,  for  her  attending  maids 
did  not  ride,  but  walked  at  her  feet.  The  number  indicated  a  person's 
wealth  and  position. 

43  f.  Ahinoam.  i  Sam.  27  : 3;  30  : 5;  2  Sam.  2  :  2;  3  :  2;  i  Chron. 
3:1.  Jezreel  is  a  Judean  town,  Josh.  15  :56.  Michal,  c/.  2  Sam. 
3  :  14  f.  As  David  was  an  outlaw,  and  as  widowhood  was  an  un- 
desirable state,  Saul  had  found  another  husband  for  his  daughter. 

Ch.  26.  Saul  again  is  at  the  mercy  of  David,  but  is  spared.  The 
story  resembles  so  closely  that  in  ch.  24  that  most  scholars  regard  them 
as  duplicate  versions  of  the  same  event.  The  plot  is  identical.  Saul 
pursues  David  in  the  wilderness;  David  stands  by  the  unsuspecting 
king  so  that  he  could  kill  him  at  a  blow,  but  refuses  because  Saul  is 

203 


26:2  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Doth  not  David  hide  himself  ^  in  the  hill  of  Hachilah, 

2.  which  is  before  the  desert?  Then  Saul  arose,  and 
went  down  to  the  wilderness  of  Ziph,  having  three 
thousand  chosen  men  of  Israel  with  him,  to  seek  David 

3.  in  the  wilderness  of  Ziph.  And  Saul  pitched  in  the 
hill  of  Hachilah,  which  is  before  the  desert,  by  the 
way.  But  David  abode  in  the  wilderness,  and  he 
saw  that  Saul  came  after  him  into  the  wilderness. 

4.  David  therefore  sent  out  spies,  and  understood  that 

5.  Saul  was  come  of  a  certainty.     And  David  arose,^ 

1  G.  adds  with  M5  as  23  :  19.  2  g.  adds  stealthily. 

the  anointed  of  Jahveh.  He  takes  material  evidence  of  his  opportunity 
to  strike,  and  from  a  safe  distance  pleads  his  case  to  the  king.  Saul  is 
moved  by  David's  magnanimity  and  withdraws  from  the  pursuit. 

The  only  serious  though  not  insuperable  difiference  is  the  time  and 
place  of  the  opportunity  to  slay  the  king.  In  one  case  Saul  goes 
alone  in  the  daytime  into  a  cave  where  David  is  hiding;  in  the  other 
David  and  a  single  companion  enter  the  heart  of  Saul's  camp  at 
night.  Had  there  been  such  a  crisis  twice  it  is  inconceivable  that 
in  the  second  conversation  between  Saul  and  David  there  should  be 
no  hint  of  an  earlier  truce.  David's  plea  and  Saul's  answer  are 
substantially  the  same  in  both  cases.  There  are  in  ch.  26  certain 
features  in  common  with  23  :  19  ff,  a  third  story  of  David's  narrow 
escape  from  Saul,  cf.  further  in  Introd. 

1.  This  is  an  almost  verbatim  repetition  of  23  :  19. 

2.  Essentially  the  same  as  24  :  2  except  that  David  is  in  Ziph, 
23  :  19  instead  of  En-gedi. 

3.  Hachilah  is  again  parallel  to  23  :  19  ff.  rather  than  to  ch.  24. 

4.  Spies.  In  view  of  the  statement  that  he  saw  that  Saul  came 
after  him,  v.  3,  the  sending  of  spies  would  be  unnecessary.  But 
reading  unto  Nakon  instead  of  of  a  certainty  as  in  23  :  23,  we  see  the 
point.  David  saw  that  Saul  had  entered  the  wilderness,  and  sent 
out  spies  to  ascertain  his  exact  position.  They  learn  that  he  had 
reached  Nakon,  and  to  that  place  David  advances.  G.  reads  from 
Keilah  showing  a  close  relationship  to  23  ;  19. 

5.  Abner  is  not  mentioned  in  either  of  the  other  stories.  Within 
the  place  of  the  wagons  is  a  rendering  the  text  will  not  bear.  G.  ren- 
ders chariot,  Said  was  lying  in  a  chariot.  But  as  Smith  says  Abishai 
could  not  then  propose  to  pin  him  to  the  ground,  v.  8.    As  in  17  :  20 

204 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  26:9 


and  came  to  the  place  ^  where  Saul  had  pitched:  and 
David  beheld  the  place  ^  where  Saul  lay,  and  Abner 
the  son  of  Ner,  the  captain  of  his  host:  and  Saul  lay 
within  the  place  of  the  wagons,  and  the  people  pitched 

6.  round  about  him.  Then  answered  David  and  said  to 
Ahimelech  the  Hittite,  and  to  Abishai  the  son  of 
Zeruiah,  brother  to  Joab,  saying,  Who  will  go  down 
with  me  to  Saul  to  the  camp?    And  Abishai  said,  I 

7.  will  go  down  with  thee.  So  David  and  Abishai  came 
to  the  people  by  night:  and,  behold,  Saul  lay  sleeping 
within  the  place  of  the  wagons,  with  his  spear  stuck 
in  the  ground  at  his  head:  and  Abner  and  the  people 

8.  lay  round  about  him.  Then  said  Abishai  to  David, 
God  hath  delivered  up  thine  enemy  into  thine  hand 
this  day:  now  therefore  let  me  smite  him,  I  pray  thee, 
with  the  spear  to  the  earth  at  one  stroke,  and  I  will 

9.  not  smite  him  the  second  time.    And  David  said  to 

1  Omit,  G. 

the  word  seems  to  mean  encampment,  and  that  word  is  suitable  here. 
Saul  was  lying  in  the  encampment  and  the  army  was  disposed  in 
a  circle  about  him  so  that  to  reach  Saul  one  would  have  to  wend 
his  way  through  a  long  line  of  sleeping  soldiers.  The  story  assumes 
that  no  guards  were  set. 

6.  Ahimelech  is  not  mentioned  elsewhere.  Another  Hittite  was 
prominent  in  David's  army  at  a  later  time,  2  Sam.  11:3.  He  ap- 
parently did  not  volunteer  to  accompany  his  chief  on  the  hazardous 
enterprise. 

7.  By  night.  We  must  suppose  that  from  some  neighboring 
height  David  had  watched  Saul's  army  making  camp.  ^  When  night 
came  he  proceeded  to  the  spot  where  Saul  lay.  Within  the  place 
of  the  wagons,  better  in  the  encampment,  cf.  v.  5, 

8.  Here  Abishai  is  the  speaker  rather  than  the^  collective  men  of 
David  of  24  :  3.  Abishai  was  always  keen  for  action,  2  Sam.  16  : 9, 
and  proposed  that  he  should  seize  the  chance  ofifered  of  Jahveh. 
Second  time,  i.  e.,  a  second  blow  will  not  be  necessary. 

9.  In  24  :  6  David  alleges  the  same  reason  for  inaction,  but  applies 

205 


26: 10  THE   FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


Abishai,  Destroy  him  not:  for  who  can  put  forth  his 
hand  against  the  Lord's  anointed,  and  be  guiltless? 

10.  And  David  said,  As  the  Lord  hveth,  the  Lord  shall 
smite  him;  or  his  day  shall  come  to  die;  or  he  shall  go 

11.  down  into  battle,  and  perish.  The  Lord  forbid  that  I 
should  put  forth  mine  hand  against  the  Lord's 
anointed:  but  now  take,  I  pray  thee,  the  spear  that  is 

12.  at  his  head,  and  the  cruse  of  water,  and  let  us  go.  So 
David  took  the  spear  and  the  cruse  of  water  from  Saul's 
head;  and  they  gat  them  away,  and  no  man  saw  it, 
nor  knew  it,  neither  did  any  awake:  for  they  were  all 
asleep;  because  a  deep  sleep  from  the  Lord  was  fallen 

13.  upon  them.  Then  David  went  over  to  the  other  side, 
and  stood  on  the  top  of  the  mountain  afar  off;  a  great 

14.  space  being  between  them:  and  David  cried  to  the 

it  to  restrain  himself  as  v.  11,  though  he  does  check  the  men  too, 
24  :  7. 

10.  David  looks  for  the  death  of  Saul,  but  feels  that  he  must  wait 
until  Jahveh  strikes  him  down,  or  that  natural  death  shall  come, 
or  that  he  shall  fall  in  battle.  There  is  an  intimation  of  what  actually 
happened;  the  moment  Saul  was  dead,  David  sought  the  throne, 
2  Sam.  2  : 1-4. 

11.  The  order  is  logical  here,  David  securing  his  evidence  after 
refusing  to  slay  the  kmg,  cf.  note  on  24  :  7.  The  cruse  of  water  is 
not  mentioned  in  v.  7  nor  in  the  sequel  v.  22,  and  is  probably  inter- 
polated here.  The  spear  like  the  skirt  of  the  robe,  24  : 4,  is  a  mark 
of  royalty,  which  Saul  always  keeps  by  him,  but  the  jug  of  water 
seems  to  have  no  significance. 

12.  Deep  sleep,  cf.  Gen.  2:21.  The  writer  must  needs  explain  the 
possibility  of  the  entering  of  Saul's  camp,  the  conversation,  and  the 
carrying  away  of  a  trophy  without  discovery.  To  do  this  he  intro- 
duces the  supernatural. 

13.  A  great  space  shows  that  David  did  not  trust  Saul  when  he 
was  awake,  and  so  differing  from  24  :  8.  The  Orientals  are  famous 
for  the  carrying  power  of  their  voices. 

14.  Answereth  thou  not  implies  that  David  had  shouted  for 
some  time  without  getting  a  reply.    We  may  infer  that  David  waited 

206 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


people,  and  to  Abner  ^  the  son  of  Ner/  saying,  An- 
swerest  thou  not,  Abner?    Then  Abner  answered  and 

15.  said.  Who  art  thou  that  criest  to  the  king?  And  David 
said  to  Abner,  Art  not  thou  a  valiant  man?  and  who  is 
hke  to  thee  in  Israel?  wherefore  then  hast  thou  not 
kept  watch  over  thy  lord  the  king?  for  there  came  one 

16.  of  the  people  in  to  destroy  the  king  thy  lord.  This 
thing  is  not  good  that  thou  hast  done.  As  the  Lord 
liveth,  ye  are  worthy  to  die,  because  ye  have  not  kept 
watch  over  your  lord,  the  Lord's  anointed.  And 
now,  see,  where  the  king's  spear  is,  and  the  cruse  of 

17.  water  that  was  at  his  head.  And  Saul  knew  David's 
voice,  and  said,  Is  this  thy  voice,  my  son  David?   And 


G.,  he  spoke. 


until  daylight,  and  began  calling  before  Saul's  men  were  awake. 
With  G.  it  is  better  to  omit  to  the  king,  for  David  certainly  did  not 
call  Saul,  though  he  meant  the  king  to  hear  his  caustic  questions 
to  his  general. 

15.  Valiant  is  a  clumsy  interpolation.  David's  question  is  equiv- 
alent to  what  kind  of  a  man  are  you?  One  of  the  people  must  refer 
to  Abishai,  v.  8.  David's  sharp  rebuke  of  Abner  is  full  of  suggestion. 
Abner  had  been  from  the  first  Saul's  commander-in-chief,  14  :  50. 
Later  David  had  attained  a  high  position  in  Saul's  army,  threatening 
Abner's  position.  The  intimation  that  some  person  had  moved 
Saul  against  David,  24  : 9,  v.  19,  gets  support  from  these  facts.  The 
sarcastic  condemnation  of  Abner,  even  declaring  that  he  should  be 
put  to  death,  v.  16,  may  be  due  to  David's  belief  that  Saul's  general 
had  been  his  enemy. 

16.  Ye  are  worthy.  The  change  to  the  plural  is  imnatural,  and 
the  singular  is  resumed  with  see.  David  had  reproved  Abner  for 
failing  to  guard  the  king,  v.  15.  He  can  hardly  propose  the  execution 
of  the  whole  army.  The  commander  was  responsible,  and  David's 
animus  is  clearly  against  him  and  not  against  the  people.  It  is  prob- 
able that  the  singular  should  be  used  throughout.  Cruse  of  water,  cf. 
on  V.  1 1 .  The  phrase  is  peculiarly  suspicious  here  as  it  is  preceded  by 
the  sign  of  the  accusative. 

17.  C/.  24  :  16  where  Saul  makes  this  comment  after  David  has 
pleaded  his  case. 

207 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


i8.  David  said,  It  is  my  voice/  my  lord,  O  king.  And  he 
said,  Wherefore  doth  my  lord  pursue  after  his  servant? 
for  what  have  I  done?  or  what  evil  is  in  mine  hand? 

19.  Now  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  let  my  lord  the  king  hear 
the  words  of  his  servant.  If  it  be  the  Lord  that  hath 
stirred  thee  up  against  me,  let  him  accept  an  offering: 
but  if  it  be  the  children  of  men,  cursed  be  they  before 
the  Lord;  for  they  have  driven  me  out  this  day  that 
I  should  not  cleave  unto  the  inheritance  of  the  Lord, 

20.  saying,  Go,  serve  other  gods.  Now  therefore,  let 
not  my  blood  fall  to  the  earth  away  from  the  presence 
of  the  Lord:  for  the  king  of  Israel  is  come  out  to  seek 
a  flea,  as  when  one  doth  hunt  a  partridge  in  the  moun- 

21.  tains.  Then  said  Saul,  I  have  sinned:  return,  my  son 
David:  for  I  will  no  more  do  thee  harm,  because  my 


G.,  my  life. 


18-20.  David's  plea  varies  considerably  from  that  in  24:9-15, 
yet  the  vital  points  and  several  of  the  phrases  are  the  same.  Accept, 
literally  smell.  Jahveh  may  have  been  angry  at  David  and  instigated 
Saul  against  him ;  in  which  case  he  would  be  appeased  by  a  suitable 
offering.  Cursed  be  they  of  Jahveh.  David's  bitterness  indicates 
his  conviction  as  to  the  real  cause  of  Saul's  animosity,  probably 
having  Abner  in  mind.  Should  not  cleave.  The  idea  of  the  territorial 
domain  of  a  deity  is  strong,  cf.  2  Kings  5:7.  Outside  of  Jahveh's  land, 
David  could  not  worship  Jahveh.  Did  he  regard  Judah  as  foreign 
soil?  A  flea  is  due  to  the  influence  of  24  :  14,  for  it  makes  poor  sense 
here  in  comparison  with  a  noble  game  bird;  therefore  read  with  G. 
my  life.  Partridge  is  the  usual  rendering,  but  the  word  means  caller 
and  is  the  subject  of  hunt.  The  pomt  is  that  Saul  seeks  David's 
life  as  the  caller  pursues  in  the  mountains.  It  may  refer  to  the 
hunter's  alluring  game  by  imitating  its  call. 

21  f.  Saul's  confession  is  more  abject  than  in  24  riy.  He  invites 
David  to  rejoin  him,  an  invitation  which  David  shows  no  incUnation 
to  accept.  David  had  not  returned  the  piece  of  the  royal  robe,  but 
the  spear,  which  is  always  so  closely  associated  with  Saul,  must  go 
back. 

208 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


life  was  precious  in  thine  eyes  this  day:  behold,  I  have 

22.  played  the  fool,  and  have  erred  exceedingly.  And 
David  answered  and  said,  Behold  the  spear,  O  king! 
let  then  one  of  the  young  men  come  over  and  fetch  it. 

23.  And  the  Lord  shall  render  to  every  man  his  righteous- 
ness and  his  faithfulness:  forasmuch  as  the  Lord  de- 
livered thee  into  my  hand  to-day,  and  I  would  not 
put  forth  mine  hand  against  the  Lord's  anointed. 

24.  And,  behold,  as  thy  Hfe  was  much  set  by  this  day  in 
mine  eyes,  so  let  my  life  be  much  set  by  in  the  eyes  of 
the  Lord,  and  let  him  deliver  me  out  of  all  tribulation. 

25.  Then  Saul  said  to  David,  Blessed  be  thou,  my  son 
David:  thou  shalt  both  do  mightily,  and  shalt  surely 
prevail.  So  David  went  his  way,  and  Saul  returned 
to  his  place. 

27.  And  David  said  in  his  heart,  I  shall  now  perish  one 
day  by  the  hand  of  Saul:  there  is  nothing  better  for 
me  than  that  I  should  escape  into  the  land  of  the 
Phihstines;  and  Saul  shall  despair  of  me,  to  seek  me 
any  more  in  all  the  borders  of  Israel :  so  shall  I  escape 
2.  out  of  his  hand.    And  David  arose,  and  passed  over, 

23.  This  is  a  warning  to  Saul,  David  has  won  favor  from  Jahveh 
by  his  forbearance,  and  so  is  under  divine  protection,  an  idea  more 
fully  developed  in  v.  24. 

25.  Do  mightily  contains  no  hint  that  David  would  become  a 
king  as  24  :  20  ff.  It  only  means  that  David  shall  accomplish  great 
things  and  prevail  over  other  difficulties  as  he  had  over  Saul's  ani- 
mosity.   To  this  place  presumably  means  to  his  home  as  in  24  :  22. 

David  becomes  a  vassal  to  Achish  king  of  Gath,  27-28  :  2.  This 
passage  would  naturally  follow  23  :  19-29. 

1.  In  his  heart  or  mind,  i.  e.,  to  himself.  Perish,  David  regards 
the  danger  as  very  serious  or  he  would  not  dream  of  allying  himself 
with  the  enemies  of  Israel.  The  only  suitable  connection  is  with 
23  :  19  ff.  to  which  this  passage  makes  a  good  sequel. 

2.  Achish  is  the  kirg  from  whom  it  is  said  David  had  once  nar- 

209 


27:3  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


he  and  the  six  hundred  ^  men  that  were  with  him,  unto 

3.  Achish  the  son  of  Maoch,  king  of  Gath.  And  David 
dwelt  with  Achish  at  Gath,  he  and  his  men,  every  man 
with  his  household,  even  David  with  his  two  wives, 
Ahinoam  the  JezreeUtess,  and  Abigail  the  CarmeUtess, 

4.  Nabal's  wife.  And  it  was  told  Saul  that  David  was 
fled  to  Gath:  and  he  sought  no  more  again  for  him. 

5.  And  David  said  unto  Achish,  If  now  I  have  found 
grace  in  thine  eyes,  let  them  give  me  a  place  in  one  of . 
the  cities  in  the  country,  that  I  may  dwell  there:  for 
why  should  thy  servant  dwell  in  the  royal  city  with 

6.  thee?  Then  Achish  gave  him  Ziklag  that  day:  where- 
fore Ziklag  pertaineth  unto  the  kings  ^  of  Judah  unto 
this  day. 

7.  And  the  number  of  the  days  that  David  dwelt  in  the 
country  of  the  Philistines  was  a  full  year  and  four 

1  G.  four  hundreed.  2  g.  king. 

rowly  escaped  by  feigning  insanity,  21  :  10  fif.  Maoch  in  i  Kings 
2  :  39.  Maacah,  the  name  of  a  wife  of  David  who  was  the  mother  of 
Absalom,  2  Sam.  3  : 3. 

3.  With  his  household.  These  outlaws  had  followed  David's 
example  and  procured  themselves  wives.  The  mention  of  Abigail, 
shows  that  the  death  of  Nabal  precedes  this  story,  cf.  2  Sam.  2:2. 

5.  In  the  country.  The  word  means  really  wild  lands.  David 
wanted  to  be  on  the  border,  where  he  would  be  less  under  the  king's 
eye,  where  his  men  would  be  less  associated  with  the  Philistines, 
and  where  he  would  be  free  to  carry  out  his  own  plans.  He  intimates 
that  he  is  not  worthy  to  reside  in  the  capital. 

6.  Ziklag  is  reckoned  both  among  the  towns  of  Judah,  Josh.  15  : 
31  and  of  Simeon,  Josh.  19  :  5.  Its  site  is  unknown,  but  it  must  have 
been  far  from  Gath.  The  Judean  title  is  traced  to  this  donation, 
the  notice  showing  that  the  account  was  written  very  long  after  the 
event.    This  note  may,  however,  be  a  later  interpolation. 

7.  A  year  and  four  months.  David  remained  in  Ziklag  until 
Saul  had  been  slain,  and  he  was  ready  to  go  to  Hebron  to  be  crowned 
king  of  Judah,  2  Sam.  i  :  i;  2  :  i. 

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THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


8.  months.  And  David  and  his  men  went  up,  and  made 
a  raid  upon  the  Geshurites,  and  the  Girzites,  and  the 
Amalekites:  for  those  nations  were  the  inhabitants  of 
the  land,  which  were  of  old,  as  thou  goest  to  Shur, 

9.  even  unto  the  land  of  Eg3^t.  And  David  smote  the 
land,  and  saved  neither  man  nor  woman  alive,  and 
took  away  the  sheep,  and  the  oxen,  and  the  asses,  and 
the  camels,  and  the  apparel;  and  he  returned,  and 

10.  came  to  Achish.  And  Achish  said.  Whither  ^  have  ye 
made  a  raid  to-day?  And  David  said.  Against  the 
South  of  Judah,  and  against  the  South  of  the  Jerah- 

1  G.  against  whom.    The  English  rendering  implies  a  correction  of  the  text. 


David's  predatory  expeditions,  vs.  8-12.  This  passage  fits 
ill  with  vs.  5-7  for  the  scene  is  now  Gath,  David  returning 
to  Achish  after  each  raid.  Possibly  we  can  solve  the  problem 
sufficiently  by  transposing  the  two  passages.  A  large  part  of 
the  year  and  four  months  is  covered  by  this  description,  for  the 
events  covered  by  i  Sam.  28-2  Sam.  i,  occupied  at  most  a  few  weeks. 

8.  The  Geshurites  lived  on  the  east  of  the  Jordan,  too  far  away 
to  fit  here.  G.  has  only  one  name,  and  as  the  preposition  occurs 
before  one  name  only  in  Hebrew,  that  is  probably  right,  but  the 
original  name  was  presumably  the  Gizrites,  a  Canaanitish  tribe, 
Judg.  I  :  29.  The  text  of  v.  8b  is  badly  corrupted.  Smith  reads: 
for  these  tribes  [or  this  tribe]  dwell  in  the  land  which  stretches  from 
Telam  in  the  direction  of  Shur  to  the  land  of  Egypt.  The  only  point 
we  can  be  sure  of  is  that  David's  raids  were  in  the  south  country 
extending  towards  the  border  of  Egypt,  and  so  as  far  away  as  possible 
from  Gath. 

9.  David  did  to  these  people  what  he  had  threatened  to  do  to 
Nabal,  and  more,  for  he  slew  even  the  women,  so  that  there  would 
be  none  to  contradict  his  own  story,  v.  11.  He  was  by  this  means 
accimiulating  considerable  wealth. 

10.  To-day  does  not  mean  that  there  were  daily  raids,  for  each 
one  would  take  several  days.  South  or  Negeb  is  the  border  land  of 
Judah,  joining  the  desert.  The  JerahmeeUtes  and  Kenites  were 
tribes  in  friendly  relation  to  Judah.  David  later  sent  presents  to 
both  tribes,  30  :  29,  and  they  probably  accepted  him  as  their  king. 


27:  II  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


11.  meelites,  and  against  the  South  of  the  Kenites.  And 
David  saved  neither  man  nor  woman  aHve,  to  bring 
them  to  Gath,  saying,  Lest  they  should  tell  on  us, 
saying,  So  did  David,  and  so  hath  been  his  manner  all 
the  while  he  hath  dwelt  in  the  country  of  the  Phihs- 

12.  tines.  And  Achish  beheved  David,  saying.  He  hath 
made  his  people  Israel  utterly  to  abhor  him;  therefore 
he  shall  be  my  servant  for  ever. 

28.  And  it  came  to  pass  in  those  days,  that  the  Philistines 
gathered  their  hosts  together  for  warfare,^  to  fight 
with  Israel.  And  Achish  said  unto  David,  Know  thou 
assuredly,  that  thou  shalt  go  out  with  me  in  the  host, 
2.  thou  and  thy  men.  And  David  said  to  Achish,  There- 
fore thou  shalt  know  ^  what  thy  servant  will  do.    And 

'  G.  rightly  to  go  out.  2  Or  now  find  out. 

11.  To  bring  them  to  Gath.  Prisoners,  especially  female,  were 
prized  as  trophies  of  victory.  David's  unusual  course  was  due  to 
the  necessity  of  being  loyal  to  his  own  people,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  hoodwink  Achish.  His  ability  to  do  the  latter  enabled  him  to 
remain  his  unsuspected  vassal  so  long.  The  second  saying  should  be 
omitted,  for  what  follows  could  not  be  the  report  that  a  captive 
would  make  to  Achish,  as  it  would  be  senseless.  It  is  a  general 
summary  of  David's  course  while  he  was  in  the  Philistine  service. 

12.  For  ever  is  a  bit  strong;  permanently  fits  the  case  better.  Ach- 
ish believes  that  David  has  made  a  return  to  his  own  people  im- 
possible. With  six  hundred  warriors  he  was  a  valuable  ally;  and  as 
he  had  maintained  this  band  now  for  over  a  year  by  plunder,  it  was 
evident  that  he  was  capable.  So  we  are  prepared  for  the  next  move, 
to  take  David's  force  on  a  campaign  against  Israel. 

28  : 1.  The  Philistines  probably  includes  a  larger  force  than  Ach- 
ish's  Gittites.  Desiring  to  muster  as  large  a  force  as  possible,  and 
trusting  David's  stories,  27  :  10,  Achish  orders  him  to  join  in  the 
mobilization.  The  occasion  of  this  war  is  not  given,  but  we  may 
connect  it  with  23  :  19  £F. 

2.  For  ever,  literally  all  the  days,  i.  e.,  permanently.  David's 
position  is  highly  embarrassing.  To  fight  against  Israel  would  be 
suicidal  so  far  as  his  future  is  concerned;  to  refuse  his  chief's  order 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  28; 

Achish  said  to  David,  Therefore  will  I  make  thee 
keeper  of  mine  head  for  ever. 

4.  The  Fourth  Stage:  The  Disaster  to  the  House  of  Saulj 
28  13-31 

3.  Now  Samuel  was  dead,  and  all  Israel  had  lamented 
him,  and  buried  him  in  Ramah,  even  in  his  own  city. 
And  Saul  had  put  away  those  that  had  familiar  spirits, 

4.  and  the  wizards,  out  of  the  land.  And  the  Phihstines 
gathered  themselves  together,  and  came  and  pitched 
in  Shunem:  and  Saul  gathered  all  Israel  together,  and 

5.  they  pitched  in  Gilboa.  And  when  Saul  saw  the  host 
of  the  Phihstines,  he  was  afraid,  and  his  heart  trembled 

would  destroy  his  present  easy  position.  His  answer  is  ambiguous 
as  if  he  said:  thus  you  will  find  out  what  your  servant  can  do.  At 
this  point  the  narrative  is  interrupted  by  another  story  and  is  re- 
sumed at  29  : 1. 

Saul  visits  the  witch  of  En-dor  who  foretells  death  and  disaster, 
28  :3-25.  The  dead  Samuel  is  the  same  as  in  chs.  7,  8,  15,  hence 
the  section  is  usually  assigned  to  the  later  sources  of  the  history. 
Cf.  Introduction. 

3.  In  his  own  city,  in  25  :  i,  in  his  house.  Put  away  out  of  the 
land,  on  the  ground  that  they  were  evil.  Later  the  law  forbade  the 
practice  of  those  arts,  Deut.  18  :  10  f.  There  were  legitimate  means 
of  ascertaining  the  hidden  secrets  as  by  the  prophet,  or  by  the  priest 
with  the  ephod,  and  Saul  evidently  had  tried  in  vain  to  suppress  the 
more  questionable  methods  of  divination.  Those  that  had  familiar 
spirits  [necromancers]  and  the  wizards.  Smith  argues  that  we  should 
translate  the  talismans  and  necromantic  charms,  i.  e.,  the  instruments 
of  divination  rather  than  the  diviners, 

4.  The  Phihstine  campaign,  the  story  of  which  is  interrupted, 
is  that  begun  in  v.  i  f.  and  continued  in  29  :  i.  Shunem  is  in  the 
plain  of  Esdraelon  and  Gilboa  is  in  the  neighboring  hills. 

5  f.  From  the  hills  Saul  could  see  the  overwhelming  force  of  the 
enemy.  The  inspection  filled  him  with  terror,  and  he  sought  in 
vain  to  secure  divine  guidance,  but  the  various  devices  employed 
gave  no  results.  The  oracles  gave  him  no  instructions  as  to  the 
course  he  should  take.    The  Urim  is  not  named  in  v.  15,  and  should 

213 


28:6  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


6.  greatly.  And  when  Saul  inquired  of  the  Lord,  the 
Lord  answered  him  not,  neither  by  dreams,  nor  by 

7.  Urim,  nor  by  prophets.  Then  said  Saul  unto  his  serv- 
ants. Seek  me  a  woman  that  hath  a  familiar  spirit,  that 
I  may  go  to  her,  and  inquire  of  her.  And  his  servants 
said  to  him,  Behold,  there  is  a  woman  that  hath  a 

8.  familiar  spirit  at  En-dor.  And  Saul  disguised  himself, 
and  put  on  other  raiment,  and  went,  he  and  two  men 
with  him,  and  they  came  to  the  woman  by  night:  and 
he  said.  Divine  unto  me,  I  pray  thee,  by  the  familiar 
spirit,  and  bring  me  up  whomsoever  I  shall  name  unto 

9.  thee.    And  the  woman  said  unto  him.  Behold,  thou 


be  omitted  here  as  it  would  not  be  suitable  for  the  present  situation, 
cf.  note  on  14  :  41. 

7.  That  hath  a  familiar  spirit,  but  the  phrase  differs  from  v.  3; 
here  it  means  one  expert  in  necromancy,  or  according  to  Smith's 
idea,  a  talisman  used  in  that  art.  The  special  form  of  divination 
meant  here  is  the  bringing  up  the  spirits  of  the  dead,  like  spiritual- 
ism. The  Chronicler  regards  Saul's  act  as  very  wrong  and  the  real 
cause  of  his  death,  i  Chr.  10  :  13  f.  His  servants  knew  where  a 
necromancer  could  be  found;  so  Saul's  servant  knew  where  to  go 
for  a  like  purpose,  9  : 6.  £n-dor  still  exists  as  a  mean  village,  a 
short  distance  north  of  Shunem  where  the  Philistines  were  encamped. 
To  reach  the  place  Saul  must  make  a  long  detour  around  the  enemy. 

8.  Disguised  himself,  because  he  had  ordered  all  necromancers 
banished  or  slain.  On  account  of  his  height  (10  :  23)  disguise  would 
not  be  easy.  The  woman  would  naturally  be  accustomed  to  dis- 
guises and  may  have  recognized  Saul  at  once.  Divine  is  a  general 
term  and  the  method  is  explained  further  by  the  familiar  spirit 
which  may  well  refer  to  an  instrument  {cf.  the  ephod,  Urim  and 
Thummin),  as  Smith  suggests.  The  object  is  also  clearly  stated, 
to  raise  the  spirit  of  one  that  is  dead. 

9  f.  Cut-off,  in  V.  3  put  away,  but  the  same  idea  underlies  both 
words.  What  Saul  had  done  is  suggested  by  the  woman's  final  words 
to  cause  me  to  die.  It  appears  that  he  had  ordered  all  who  practiced 
these  arts  to  be  slain.  The  woman  suspects  that  he  is  laying  a  trap 
for  her  undoing.  She  is  reassured  by  Saul's  oath,  which  she  knows 
he  will  keep. 

214 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  28:14 


knowest  what  Saul  hath  done,  how  he  hath  cut  off 
those  that  have  famihar  spirits,  and  the  wizards,  out 
of  the  land :  wherefore  then  layest  thou  a  snare  for  my 

10.  life,  to  cause  me  to  die?  And  Saul  sware  to  her  by 
the  Lord,  saying.  As  the  Lord  liveth,  there  shall  no 

11.  punishment  happen  to  thee  for  this  thing.  Then 
said  the  woman.  Whom  shall  I  bring  up  unto  thee? 

12.  And  he  said.  Bring  me  up  Samuel.  And  when  the 
woman  saw  Samuel,  she  cried  with  a  loud  voice: 
and  the  woman  spake  to  Saul,  saying.  Why  hast  thou 

13.  deceived  me?  for  thou  art  Saul.  And  the  king  said 
unto  her.  Be  not  afraid:  for  what  seest  thou?  And 
the  woman  said  unto  Saul,  I  see  a  god  coming  up  out 

14.  of  the  earth.    And  he  said  unto  her.  What  form  is  he 

11.  Samuel  is  the  last  person  we  should  expect  Saul  to  want  to 
see.  Perhaps  he  did  not  want  to  see  him,  but  he  was  in  despair,  and 
Samuel  had  at  least  always  been  able  to  tell  him  what  to  do. 

12.  Samuel.  It  is  impossible  to  see  any  reason  why  the  wonaan 
should  recognize  Saul  when  she  saw  Samuel.  The  king's  asking 
for  Samuel,  v.  11,  is  the  natural  ground  for  the  recognition.  There- 
fore on  the  basis  of  a  few  texts  of  G.  we  should  render:  then  the  wo- 
man recognized  Said  and  screamed.  So  Nowack  and  Budde.  There 
was  good  reason  for  her  alarm. 

13.  Saul's  excitement  is  evident  and  is  heightened  by  a  reading 
in  G.  what  dost  thou  see?  Speak.  The  woman  has  adroitly  worked 
Saul  up  to  this  condition,  making  him  an  easy  victim.  We  note 
that  Saul  never  at  any  time  sees  any  figure.  The  woman  does  all 
the  seeing.  A  god  or  gods  as  the  word  is  elohim.  We  have  the  phrase 
sons  of  the  elohim,  meaning  spirits,  Job  i  :  6;  Ps.  29  :  i.  Apparently 
elohim  alone  is  used  in  the  same  sense  here,  the  woman  saying:  /  see 
a  spirit  coming  up. 

14.  Form  better  appearance.  The  description  is  not  very  detailed, 
but  Saul  was  in  too  tense  and  excited  a  state  to  be  critical.  The 
robe  would  at  once  suggest  a  painful  and,  according  to  one  account, 
the  last,  encounter  with  Samuel,  15  :  27,  35.  The  spirit  from  Sheol 
is  conceived  to  preserve  the  form  of  latest  life  and  to  require  clothes. 
Saul  greets  the  prophet  as  he  would  were  he  alive,  though  Saul  does 
not  see  the  spirit,  in  spite  of  his  wearing  a  robe. 

215 


28:15  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


of?  And  she  said,  An  old  man  cometh  up;  ^  and  he  is 
covered  with  a  robe.  And  Saul  perceived  that  it  was 
Samuel,  and  he  bowed  with  his  face  to  the  ground, 

15.  and  did  obeisance.  And  Samuel  said  to  Saul,  Why 
hast  thou  disquieted  me,  to  bring  me  up?  And  Saul 
answered,  I  am  sore  distressed;  for  the  Philistines 
make  war  against  me,  and  God  is  departed  from  me, 
and  answereth  me  no  more,  neither  by  prophets,  nor 
by  dreams:  therefore  I  have  called  thee,  that  thou 

16.  mayest  make  known  unto  me  what  I  shall  do.  And 
Samuel  said.  Wherefore  then  dost  thou  ask  of  me, 
seeing  the  Lord  is  departed  from  thee,  and  is  become 

17.  thine  adversary?  And  the  Lord  hath  ^  wrought  for 
himself,^  as  he  spake  by  me:  and  the  Lord  hath  rent 
the  kingdom  out  of  thine  hand,  and  given  it  to  thy 

18.  neighbour,  even  to  David.  Because  thou  obeyedst  not 
the  voice  of  the  Lord,  and  didst  not  execute  his  fierce 

1  G.  adds  from  the  earth.  ^  G.  has  done  to  thee. 

15.  Disquieted,  or  disturbed  my  repose  by  bringing  me  up  from 
Sheol.  The  spirits  were  supposed  to  be  in  a  state  of  unconscious  in- 
action, Job  3  :  13-19;  14  :  12.  Samuel  was  deemed  to  be  helpless 
when  the  arts  are  practiced  to  bring  him  up.  He  holds  Saul  re- 
sponsible for  the  breaking  of  his  repose.  What  I  shall  do  indicates 
that  Saul  had  not  come  to  get  a  yes  or  no  to  a  simple  question 
such  as,  shall  I  join  battle? 

16  f,  Saul  should  have  understood  the  meaning  of  Jahveh's  re- 
fusal to  answer  hun  at  all.  Is  become  thine  adversary  cannot  be 
wrung  from  the  Hebrew  text  without  an  emendation  accepted  by 
many.  A  free  rendering  of  G.  gives  good  sense :  and  has  gone  over  to  thy 
neighbor.  To  this  neighbor  Jahveh  has  given  the  authority  rent 
from  Saul,  a  clear  reminiscence  of  15  :  28, 

18.  This  verse  shows  that  this  section  is  dependent  upon  ch.  15. 
It  quite  ignores  13  :  7-15.  This  thing  refers  to  the  serious  plight 
which  Saul  himself  had  described,  v.  15.  This  day  covers  more  time 
than  twenty-four  hours. 

216 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


wrath  upon  Amalek,  therefore  hath  the  Lord  done 

19.  this  thing  unto  thee  this  day.  Moreover  the  Lord 
will  deUver  Israel  also  with  thee  into  the  hand  of 
the  PhiUstines:  and  to-morrow  shalt  thou  and  thy  sons 
be  with  me:  the  Lord  shall  deliver  the  host  of  Israel 

20.  also  into  the  hand  of  the  Philistines.  Then  Saul  fell 
straightway  his  full  length  upon  the  earth,  and  was 
sore  afraid,  because  of  the  words  of  Samuel:  and  there 
was  no  strength  in  him;  for  he  had  eaten  no  bread  all 

21.  the  day,  nor  all  the  night.  And  the  woman  came  unto 
Saul,  and  saw  that  he  was  sore  troubled,  and  said  unto 
him,  Behold,  thine  handmaid  hath  hearkened  unto  thy 
voice,  and  I  have  put  my  life  in  my  hand,  and  have 
hearkened  unto  thy  words  which  thou  spakest  unto 

22.  me.  Now  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  hearken  thou  also 
unto  the  voice  of  thine  handmaid,  and  let  me  set  a 
morsel  of  bread  before  thee;  and  eat,  that  thou  mayest 


19.  With  me.  The  abode  in  Sheol  is  not  looked  upon  as  a  state 
to  be  desired.  The  text  is  doubtful.  GK  has:  thoti  and  Jonathan  thy 
son  shall  be  with  me.  The  best  text  is  that  of  Gb.  :  thou  and  thy  sons 
with  thee  will  be  fallen.  The  last  clause  of  the  verse  repeats  the  first, 
and  should  be  omitted.  The  forecast  is  then  that  the  battle  will 
come  on  the  morrow,  indicating  a  Philistine  assault,  the  rout  of 
Israel  and  the  death  of  Saul  and  his  sons,  so  that  there  will  be  none 
left  to  contest  David's  claim  to  the  throne. 

20.  Straightway.  G.  suggests:  and  Saul  was  overcome  and  fell. 
The  fast,  the  long  night  journey,  the  deep  depression  and  finally  the 
tragic  forecast  were  too  much  for  a  man  mentally  affected,  and  the 
collapse  is  natural. 

21.  Sore  troubled  is  not  happy  as  the  words  refer  to  his  physical 
state;  completely  overcome  is  better,  for  the  king  had  fainted.  My 
life.  She  overlooks  Saul's  oath,  v.  10.  However,  she  desired  now  to  be 
as  persuasive  as  possible.  She  makes  her  yielding  to  his  desire  the 
basis  of  her  plea  that  Saul  would  harken  to  her.  Saul  had  revived 
from  the  faint  enough  to  understand. 

217 


28:23  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


23.  have  strength,  when  thou  goest  on  thy  way.  But  he 
refused,  and  said,  I  will  not  eat.  But  his  servants,  to- 
gether with  the  woman,  constrained  him;  and  he 
hearkened  unto  their  voice.    So  he  arose  from  the  earth 

24.  and  sat  upon  the  bed.  And  the  woman  had  a  fatted 
calf  in  the  house;  and  she  hasted,  and  killed  it;  and 
she  took  flour,  and  kneaded  it,  and  did  bake  un- 

25.  leavened  bread  thereof:  and  she  brought  it  before 
Saul,  and  before  his  servants;  and  they  did  eat.  Then 
they  rose  up,  and  went  away  that  night. 

29.  Now  the  PhiUstines  gathered  together  all  their  hosts 

23.  Constrained  may  be  a  compromise.  The  text  means  employed 
force;  many  scholars  by  a  slight  change  get  urged.  As  he  hearkened 
to  their  voice,  the  latter  is  more  probable.  Bed  or  couch.  Furniture 
was  scarce,  and  the  couch  was  the  only  place  he  could  rest  easily 
during  the  time  in  which  the  elaborate  meal  was  preparing. 

24  f .  Fatted  calf,  calf  of  the  stall,  and  the  stall  was  literally  in  the 
house.  Meat  and  bread  made  a  bountiful  feast  such  as  was 
offered  to  distinguished  guests.  The  sequel  to  this  story  is  found 
in  ch.  31,  though  there  is  no  necessary  connection. 

The  story  of  Saul's  interview  with  the  woman  of  Endor  has  been 
variously  interpreted,  some  taking  it  Hterally,  others  believing  that 
the  Devil  appeared  as  an  impersonation  of  Samuel,  and  others 
regarding  the  whole  story  as  an  invention. 

It  is  perfectly  possible  to  accept  the  story  as  it  stands  without 
supposing  that  a  discredited  old  hag  could  force  the  spirit  of  the 
man  of  God  to  arise  from  the  earth  at  her  bidding.  The  phenomena 
so  minutely  described  here  are  exactly  what  may  be  seen  to  day  at 
almost  any  spiritualistic  seance,  and  may  be  interpreted  in  the  same 
way.  Saul  saw  no  spirit,  and  the  voice  may  easily  have  been  the 
woman's,  since  Saul  was  not  in  a  state  to  be  critical.  The  forecast 
may  have  been  elaborated  by  the  author  of  15  : 1-16  :  13,  but  the 
prediction  of  Saul's  overthrow  was  an  easy  guess  to  any  one  knowing 
the  conditions. 

David's  loyalty  is  distrusted  by  the  Philistine  chiefs,  ch.  29.  The 
passage  is  a  direct  continuation  of  the  narrative  in  28  :  i  f. 

I.  Aphek  was  the  point  of  concentration,  a  favorite  center,  4:1. 
It  was  near  the  Philistine  country,  and  not  more  than  three  days* 
march  from  Ziklag.    The  Philistines  were  concentrating,  ready  to 

218 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  29; 

to  Aphek:  and  the  Israelites  pitched  by  the  fountain 

2.  which  is  in  Jezreel.  And  the  lords  of  the  Philistines 
passed  on  by  hundreds,  and  by  thousands:  and  David 
and  his  men  passed  on  in  the  rearward  with  Achish. 

3.  Then  said  the  princes  of  the  PhiUstines,  What  do  these 
Hebrews  here?  And  Achish  said  unto  the  princes  of 
the  Philistines,  Is  not  this  David,  the  servant  of  Saul 
the  king  of  Israel,  which  hath  been  with  me  these  days 
or  these  years,  and  I  have  found  no  fault  in  him  since 

4.  he  fell  away  unto  me  unto  this  day?    But  the  princes 

invade  Israel,  hence  we  have  a  less  advanced  position  than  that  of 
28  : 4.  The  Israelites  occupy  the  plain,  but  must  have  retired  to 
the  hills  as  the  enemy  advanced. 

2.  Lords  represents  a  Philistine  word  as^  in  5  : 8,  meaning  the 
rulers  of  whom  there  were  five,  one  for  each  chief  city.  The  magnates 
do  not  go  by  hundreds,  therefore  we  must  with  Budde  change  the 
verb  led  [their  people]  hy;  or  better  read  hosts  in  place  of  lords.  Rear- 
ward. Achish  had  made  David's  force  his  body-guard,  28  :  2,  and 
therefore  they  would  come  last  to  the  muster.  Perhaps  Achish  had 
suspected  the  attitude  of  his  chiefs,  and  had  purposely  kept  David 
out  of  sight  as  long  as  possible. 

3.  Princes  represents  a  different  word  from  lords  in  v.  2,  and  seems 
to  mean  the  military  leaders.  The  Hebrew  has:  what  are  these  He- 
brews? a  meaningless  question.  R.  V.  is  wrong  for  Achish  does  not 
answer  that  question.  G.  has  preserved  the  true  text,  though  the 
reading  is  generally  overlooked:  who  are  these  passing  by?  The  gen- 
erals notice  a  strange  force,  entirely  unknown  to  them,  and  naturally 
ask  who  they  are.  The  motley  band  would  hardly  have  been  rec- 
ognized as  Hebrews.  These  days  or  these  years,  Heb.  now  days 
or  now  years,  is  a  pretty  vague  statement.  With  the  help  of  G. 
we  get:  now  these  two  years,  in  close  enough  agreement  with  27  :  7. 
Fell  away  implies  desertion,  Jer.  21  : 9;  37  :  13.  Unto  me  is  rightly 
added  from  G. 

4  f.  Wroth  because  Achish  had  been  lacking  in  failing  to  see  the 
danger  which  was  so  apparent  to  them.  This  fellow  is  a  gratuitous 
importation;  we  should  render  should  he  now  reconcile  himself.  It 
is  assumed  that  David  had  been  banished,  and  would  eagerly  seize 
an  occasion  of  making  peace  with  his  king.  They  knew  the  fame  of 
David,  quoting  the  famous  song,  18  :  7;  21  :  12,  and  they  knew  who 
the  slaiu  ten  thousand  were. 

219 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


of  the  Philistines  were  wroth  with  him;  and  the  princes 
of  the  Philistines  said  unto  him,  Make  the  man  re- 
turn,^ that  he  may  go  back  ^  to  his  place  where  thou 
hast  appointed  him,  and  let  him  not  go  ^  down  with 
us  to  battle,  lest  in  the  battle  he  become  an  adversary 
to  us:  for  wherewith  should  this  fellow  reconcile  himself 
unto  his  lord?  should  it  not  be  with  the  heads  of  these 

5.  men?    Is  not  this  David,  of  whom  they  sang  one  to 
another  in  dances,  saying, 

Saul  hath  slain  his  thousands, 

6.  And  David  his  ten  thousands? 

Then  Achish  called  David,  and  said  unto  him,  As  the 
Lord  liveth,  thou  hast  been  upright,  and  thy  going  out 
and  thy  coming  in  with  me  in  the  host  is  good  in  my 
sight:  for  I  have  not  found  evil  in  thee  since  the  day  of 
thy  coming  unto  me  unto  this  day:  nevertheless  the 

7.  lords  favour  thee  not.    Wherefore  now  return,  and  go 
in  peace,  that  thou  displease  not  the  lords  of  the  PhiUs- 

8.  tines.    And  David  said  unto  Achish,  But  what  have 
I  done?  and  what  hast  thou  found  in  thy  servant  so 

1  G.  omits.  2  Or  he  shaU  not  go. 

6.  As  the  Lord  liveth  is  a  Hebrew  oath,  unnatural  in  the  mouth 
of  a  Philistine.  The  phrase  shows  the  Hebrew  coloring.  Achish 
is  very  diplomatic  in  his  difficult  task  of  dismissing  David  so  as  not 
at  once  to  make  him  the  adversary  the  generals  feared  he  would 
become  in  the  heat  of  battle.  The  lords  are  the  same  people  before 
called  the  generals  or  princes,  v.  3  f.,  showing  a  careless  confusion. 
Achish  was  one  of  five  chiefs  and  he  had  to  yield  to  the  majority  op- 
posed to  him. 

8.  David's  protest  is  after  all  histrionic.  The  suspicion  of  the 
lords  is  better  founded  than  they  knew,  as  he  had  consistently 
deceived  his  benefactor.  Doubtless  in  his  heart,  he  was  greatly 
relieved,  for  he  was  delivered  from  a  highly  embarrassing  situation. 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  30; 

long  as  I  have  been  before  thee  unto  this  day,  that  I 
may  not  go  and  fight  against  the  enemies  of  my  lord 
9.  the  king?  And  Achish  answered  and  said  to  David, 
I  know  that  thou  art  good  in  my  sight/  as  an  angel 
of  God:  ^  notwithstanding  the  princes  of  the  Philistines 
have  said,  He  shall  not  go  up  with  us  to  the  battle. 

10.  Wherefore  now  rise  up  early  in  the  morning  with  the 
servants  of  thy  lord  that  are  come  with  thee:  and  as 
soon  as  ye  be  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  have  light, 

11.  depart.  So  David  rose  up  early,  he  and  his  men,  to 
depart  in  the  morning,  to  return  into  the  land  of  the 
PhiHstines.    And  the  Philistines  went  up  to  Jezreel. 

30.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  David  and  his  men  were 

'  G.  omits. 

9.  Angel  of  God,  or  better,  messenger  of  God  indicates  one  with 
a  divine  mission  rather  than  a  divine  nature.  Here  the  comparison 
suggests  loyalty;  in  2  Sam.  14  :  17,  the  idea  is  discernment,  and  in 
19  :  27,  justice.     Princes  is  here  the  right  term. 

10.  There  is  unusual  stress  upon  the  command  to  depart  at  the 
very  break  of  day.  Perhaps  Achish  felt  that  it  would  not  be  safe 
for  David  to  be  found  in  the  camp  the  next  day.  G.  indicates 
that  a  suggestive  passage  has  been  lost  in  our  text,  and  we  may 
render  the  verse  in  full:  and  now  rise  early  in  the  morning,  thou  and 
the  servants  of  thy  lord  who  have  come  with  thee,  and  proceed  to  the 
place  where  I  have  appointed  you,  and  lay  not  up  in  thy  heart  a  sense- 
less speech,  for  thou  art  good  in  my  sight;  and  he  early  on  your^  way, 
as  soon  as  you  can  see,  and  get  away.  The  senseless  speech  is  the 
charges  of  chsloyalty  made  by  the  generals. 

11.  Instead  of  in  the  morning  to  return  G.  has  the  suggestive 
reading  and  to  guard,  suggesting  that  Achish  had  proposed  as  a 
balm  to  David's  supposedly  wounded  feelings  that  he  go  back  to 
defend  the  homes  of  the  absent  warriors.  To  Jezreel  indicates  that 
after  David's  dismissal,  the  Philistine  army  advanced  to  the  great 
plain  where  Saul's  force  was  encamped. 

David  recovers  the  spoil  of  his  plundered  city,  ch.  30.  30  : 1-6. 
The  disaster  at  Ziklag.  i.  Ziklag,  G.  has  Keilah,  according  to 
which  David  heard  of  the  raid  wWle  still  on  the  way  back  from 
Aphek.    This  fits  well  with  his  arrival  at  Zliklag  described  in  v.  3. 

221 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


come  to  Ziklag  on  the  third  day,  that  the  Amalekites 
had  made  a  raid  upon  the  South,  and  upon  Ziklag, 

2.  and  had  smitten  Ziklag,  and  burned  it  with  fire;  and 
had  taken  captive  the  women  and  all  ^  that  were 
therein,  both  small  and  great:  they  slew  not  any,^  but 

3.  carried  them  off,  and  went  their  way.  And  when 
David  and  his  men  came  to  the  city,  behold,  it  was 
burned  with  fire;  and  their  wives,  and  their  sons,  and 

4.  their  daughters,  were  taken  captives.  Then  David 
and  the  people  that  were  with  him  Uf  ted  up  their  voice 

5.  and  wept,  until  they  had  no  more  power  to  weep.  And 
David's  two  wives  were  taken  captives,  Ahinoam  the 
Jezreelitess,  and  Abigail  the  wife  of  Nabal  the  Car- 

6.  meUte.  And  David  was  greatly  distressed;  for  the 
people  spake  of  stoning  him,  because  the  soul  of  all 
the  people  was  grieved,  every  man  for  his  sons  and 
for  his  daughters:  but  David  strengthened  himself  in 
the  Lord  his  God. 

1  So  G.  2  G.  man  or  woman. 

3.  This  appears  to  be  the  point  at  which  David  reaches  Ziklag, 
and  sees  the  ruin  left  by  the  raiders.  Taken  captives.  This  fact 
could  not  have  been  known  at  the  time.  Nothing  is  said  about  the 
cattle  now.  The  Amalekites  had  taken  advantage  of  his  absence, 
and  had  done  to  him  as  he  had  been  doing  to  others. 

4  f.  This  extreme  emotional  outburst  is  characteristic  of  the 
Orientals.  Emphasis  is  laid  upon  the  loss  of  David's  wives,  though 
they  were  covered  by  the  general  statement  of  v.  3. 

6,  Greatly  distressed  is  scarcely  adequate;  the  idea  is  he  was  in 
great  straits,  not  now  because  of  the  losses,  but  because  of  the  out- 
break in  his  band,  who  were  on  the  point  of  stoning  him  to  death. 
The  leader  is  held  to  be  responsible,  especially  if  there  had  been 
opposition  to  the  expedition  with  the  Philistines.  Strengthened 
himself  means  that  David  used  his  resources  by  the  aid  of  his  God, 
and  so  was  prompt  to  take  action.  Instead  of  merely  trying  to 
quell  the  mutineers,  he  prepares  to  lead  them  against  those  who  had 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


7.  And  David  said  to  Abiathar  the  priest,  the  son  of 
Ahimelech,  I  pray  thee,  bring  me  hither  the  ephod.^ 
And  Abiathar  brought  thither  the  ephod  to  David.  ^ 

8.  And  David  inquired  of  the  Lord,  saying.  If  I  pursue 
after  this  troop,  shall  I  overtake  them?  And  he  an- 
swered him,  Pursue:  for  thou  shalt  surely  overtake 

9.  them,  and  shalt  without  fail  recover  all.  So  David 
went,  he  and  the  six  hundred  men  that  were  with  him, 
and  came  to  the  brook  Besor,  where  those  that  were 

10.  left  behind  stayed.    But  David  pursued,  he  and  four 
hundred  men:  for  two  hundred  stayed  behind,  which 

1  G.  omits. 

plundered  them.    He  will  give  them  a  chance  to  stone  the  real  cul- 
prits. 

David  reaches  the  camp  of  the  Amalekites,  vs.  7-15.  7.  Abiathar 
had  brought  the  ephod  to  David  after  his  flight  from  Nob,  i  Sam. 
22:  20;  23  :6. 

8.  We  should  read:  Shall  I  pursue  this  troop?  Will  I  overtake 
them?  The  first  question  is  the  vital  one,  and  the  one  which  is  di- 
rectly answered.  Jahveh  promises  more  than  is  asked,  a  complete 
rescue  of  the  captives.  The  word  rendered  troop,  recurring  fre- 
quently in  the  passage,  really  means  a  marauding  band. 

9.  Brook,  or  rather  in  early  Hebrew,  the  wadi  or  valley  through 
which  a  stream  flows.  Besor  is  not  named  elsewhere,  and  its  location 
is  unknown.  Since  a  part  of  David's  force  was  exhausted  (but  cf. 
note  on  v.  10),  it  must  have  been  some  distance  from  Ziklag.  Where 
those  that  were  left  behind  stayed  is  a  forced  rendering  of  an  ob- 
scure phrase.  Literally  it  says,  a7id  those  that  were  left  over  stayed, 
i.  e.,  in  Ziklag.  Some  writers  treat  the  words  as  a  gloss.  G.  at 
least  makes  good  sense:  and  he  left  there  two  hundred  men.  The 
phrase  unnecessarily  anticipates  v.  10. 

10.  The  word  rendered  were  faint  occurs  only  here  and  in  v.  21. 
The  noun  means  corpse,  hence  the  verb  should  mean  to  he  dead,  and 
that  is  too  strong.  Again  we  find  a  clear  text  in  G.  going  back  to 
V.  gb  we  have:  He  left  there  two  hundred  men,  and  he  pushed  on  with 
four  hundred.  Now  the  two  hundred  who  remained  across  the  wadi 
Besor  stayed  to  serve  as  a  guard.  This  text  gives  a  different  color  to 
David's  plan.  He  was  approaching  the  haunts  of  the  enemy;  but 
be  did  not  know  where  they  were.    He  divides  his  force,  leaving 

223 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


were  so  faint  that  they  could  not  go  over  the  brook 

11.  Besor:  and  they  found  an  Egyptian  in  the  field,  and 
brought  him  to  David,  and  gave  him  bread,  and  he 

12.  did  eat;  and  they  gave  him  water  to  drink:  and  they 
gave  him  a  piece  of  a  cake  of  figs,^  and  two  clusters  of 
raisins;  ^  and  when  he  had  eaten,  his  spirit  came  again 
to  him:  for  he  had  eaten  no  bread,  nor  drunk  any 

13.  water,  three  days  and  three  nights.  And  David  said 
unto  him,  To  whom  belongest  thou?  and  whence  art 
thou?  And  he  said,  I  am  a  young  man  of  Egypt, 
servant  to  an  Amalekite;  and  my  master  left  me,  be- 

14.  cause  three  days  agone  I  fell  sick.  We  made  a  raid 
upon  the  South  of  the  Cherethites,  and  upon  that 
which  belongeth  to  Judah,  and  upon  the  South  of 

15.  Caleb;  and  we  burned  Ziklag  with  fire.    And  David 

1  Omit.  G. 

one-third  to  watch  and  guard  the  rear  while  he  advances  with  his 
main  body. 

12.  Figs  and  raisins  were  a  part  of  the  supplies  brought  by  Abigail, 
25  :  18;  they  were  common  articles  of  food.  Spirit  came  again  shows 
that  the  Egyptian  was  as  good  as  dead  when  he  was  found.  Three 
days  indicates  that  the  raiders  were  in  time  that  far  ahead  of  the 
pursuers;  but  David  had  at  least  found  their  trail.  The  slave  was 
discovered  by  some  of  the  scouts  who  had  been  spread  out  in  advance, 
looking  for  signs. 

13.  Belongest  thou.  The  fact  that  he  was  a  poor  Egyptian  in 
that  country  proved  that  he  was  a  slave.  And  he  said.  G.  renders 
the  same  text:  and  the  Egyptian  said,  I  am  the  slave  of  an  Amalekite. 
Fell  sick,  so  that  he  could  not  keep  on  with  the  raiders  who  would 
not  risk  pausing  until  they  reached  a  place  of  safety. 

14.  In  V.  3  the  place  of  the  raid  is  stated  in  general  terms,  upon 
the  Negeh  or  South.  The  Egyptian  who  had  been  with  the  mauraders 
gives  fuller  details,  showing  that  Ziklag  was  but  one  of  many  places 
plundered.  The  fact  that  Ziklag  alone  was  burned  was  due  to  its 
defencelessness  or  as  an  act  of  revenge. 

15.  The  Egyptian  could  lead  David  to  the  raiders,  either  because 

224 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


said  to  him,  Wilt  thou  bring  me  down  to  this  troop? 
And  he  said,  Swear  unto  me  by  God,  that  thou  wilt 
neither  kill  me,  nor  dehver  me  up  into  the  hands  of 
my  master,  and  I  will  bring  thee  down  to  this  troop.  ^ 
i6.  And  when  he  had  brought  him  down,  behold,  they 
were  spread  abroad  over  all  the  ground,  eating  and 
drinking,  and  feasting,  because  of  all  the  great  spoil 
that  they  had  taken  out  of  the  land  of  the  PhiUstines, 

17.  and  out  of  the  land  of  Judah.  And  David  ^  smote 
them  from  the  twilight  even  unto  the  evening  of  the 
next  day:  and  there  escaped  not  a  man  of  them,  save 
four  hundred  young  men,  which  rode  upon  camels  and 

18.  fled.    And  David  recovered  all  that  the  Amalekites 

19.  had  taken:  and  David  rescued  his  two  wives.  And 
there  was  nothing  lacking  to  them,  neither  small  nor 
great,  neither  sons  nor  daughters,  neither  spoil,  nor 
any  thing  that  they  had  taken  to  them:  David  brought 

1  G.  adds:  and  he  swore  unto  him.  2  q.  adds,  came  upon  them  and. 


he  had  heard  them  say  where  they  were  going,  or  because  he  knew 
their  favorite  haunts  where  they  could  store  spoils. 

David  destroys  the  band  of  Amalekites.  vs.  16-20.  16.  Spread 
abroad,  or  more  exactly,  left  to  themselves  over  the  face  of  the  whole 
country.  Discipline  was  relaxed  as  the  raiders  felt  they  had  reached 
a  secure  hiding  place;  each  one  was  free  to  do  as  he  liked.  Doubtless 
they  were  widely  scattered,  and  so  an  easy  prey  for  David. 

17.  A  two  days'  battle  is  inconceivable  under  the  circumstances. 
Everything  indicates  that  the  surprise  was  complete  and  the  action 
short  and  decisive.  By  the  aid  of  G.  we  may  get:  he  smote  them  from 
twilight  until  the  evening;  and  he  slew  them,  so  that  not  a  man  escaped. 
The  camels  were  too  fast  to  be  overtaken  by  men  on  foot. 

19.  Stress  is  laid  upon  the  recovery  of  all  that  the  robbers  had 
taken  from  Ziklag,  though  the  wives  of  the  band  are  not  specified 
here.  The  captives  would  be  apart  by  themselves  and  so  escape 
danger  in  the  battle. 

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30:20  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


20.  back  all.  And  David  took  all  the  flocks  and  the  herds, 
which  they  drave  before  those  other  cattle,  and  said, 

21.  This  is  David's  spoil.  And  David  came  to  the  two 
hundred  men,  which  were  so  faint  that  they  could  not 
follow  David,  whom  also  they  ^  had  made  to  abide  at 
the  brook  Besor:  and  they  went  forth  to  meet  David, 
and  to  meet  the  people  that  were  with  him:  and  when 

22.  David  came  near  to  the  people,  he  saluted  them.  Then 
answered  all  the  wicked  men  and  men  of  BeUal,  of 

1  G.,  he,  i.  e.,  David. 

20.  The  text  is  so  corrupt  that  a  part  of  the  verse  is  unintelligible. 
It  is  clear  that  it  means  that  the  Hebrews  took  a  lot  of  booty  beyond 
the  recovery  of  their  own.  The  Amalekites  had  raided  other  places 
than  Ziklag,  and  all  their  plunder  was  taken  by  David.  That  this 
rich  prize  all  became  David's,  as  the  text  implies,  is  impossible  in 
view  of  the  dispute  about  the  distribution  of  the  surplus,  v.  22.  On 
the  other  hand,  David  did  have  a  Hberal  share  so  that  he  was  able 
to  send  generous  gifts  to  the  chiefs  of  several  cities,  vs.  26-31.  In 
its  original  form  the  verse  apparently  described  this  condition,  and 
we  cannot  get  it  now  out  of  any  text  or  any  proposed  emendation. 
G.  reads:  arid  David  took  all  the  sheep  and  the  cattle,  and  led  them  in 
front  of  the  spoils;  and  of  those  spoils  it  was  said,  this  is  the  spoil  of 
David.  Wellhausen's  reading  is:  and  they  took  all  the  sheep  and  cattle 
and  drove  them  before  him  and  said,  this  is  David's  spoil.  Smith  sug- 
gests: all  the  sheep  and  cattle  which  the  Amalekites  had  driven  before 
them  [taken  away  for  themselves]  this  also  became  David's  spoil. 
Wellhausen's  emendation  is  based  on  the  Vulgate,  and  is  perhaps 
the  best  we  can  do,  especially  if  we  agree  with  Nowack  that  the 
phrase,  this  is  David's  spoil,  does  not  signify  personal  possession,  but 
is  a  tribute  to  the  great  leader. 

A  new  law  is  estabhshed  in  Israel,  vs.  21-25.  21.  Were  faint.  G. 
reads  who  were  left  behind  from  following  David,  cf.  note  on  v.  10,  an 
interpretation  confirmed  by  the  better  reading  he  made  them  remain  at 
Besor.  This  force  came  forward  to  meet  the  returning  victors,  and 
reading  again  with  G.,  they  ask  him  of  his  welfare.  They  are  the  ones 
eager  for  news  as  to  the  outcome  of  the  expedition. 

22.  Certain  of  those  who  had  borne  the  "  burden  and  heat  of  the 
day,"  insisted  that  none  of  the  recovered  spoil  should  be  given  to 
the  two  hundred  who  had  done  nothing  more  strenuous  than  guard 
the  camp.    It  was  conceded  that  they  should  receive  their  wives  and 

226 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


those  that  went  with  David,  and  said,  Because  they 
went  not  with  us,  we  will  not  give  them  aught  of  the 
spoil  that  we  have  recovered,  save  to  every  man  his 
wife  and  his  children,  that  they  may  lead  them  away, 

23.  and  depart.  Then  said  David,  Ye  shall  not  do  so,  my 
brethren,  with  that  which  the  Lord  hath  given  unto 
us,  who  hath  preserved  us,  and  delivered  the  troop 

24.  that  came  against  us  into  our  hand.  And  who  will 
hearken  unto  you  in  this  matter?  for  as  his  share  is 
that  goeth  down  to  the  battle,  so  shall  his  share  be 
that  tarrieth  by  the  stuff:  they  shall  share  alike. 

25.  And  it  was  so  from  that  day  forward,  that  he  made  it 
a  statute  and  an  ordinance  for  Israel,  unto  this  day. 

26.  And  when  David  came  to  Ziklag,  he  sent  of  the  spoil 
unto  the  elders  of  Judah,  even  to  his  friends,  saying, 
Behold  a  present  for  you  of  the  spoil  of  the  enemies  of 

27.  the  Lord;  to  them  which  were  in  Beth-el,  and  to 

children,  but  their  cattle  would  belong  to  those  who  had  fought  for 
their  recovery. 

23  f.  David  rules  that  Jahveh  had  restored  their  goods,  note  the 
favorable  counsel,  v.  8,  and  so  the  contention  of  the  men  that  the 
booty  belonged  to  those  who  won  it,  was  inadmissible.  The  booty 
was  Jahveh's  and  therefore  it  must  be  divided  equally.  There 
seems  to  have  been  no  effort  to  give  back  to  each  one  what  he  had 
previously  possessed.  David  here  asserts  himself  as  absolute  in  author- 
ity. The  question  in  v.  24  sounds  strange;  we  should  expect:  let 
everyone  harken  to  me  in  this  matter. 

25.  This  is  an  interesting  case  of  a  law  resulting  from  a  judicial 
decision.  In  America  the  decision  of  a  court  has  more  binding  force 
than  the  act  of  a  legislative  body. 

David  sends  presents  out  of  his  spoil  to  the  elders  of  several  Judean 
towns,  vs.  26-31.  There  can  be  no  doubt  what  his  object  was.  At 
this  time  Saul  was  slain,  and  the  feeble  remnant  of  his  government 
was  driven  across  the  Jordan.  David  took  steps  immediately  to 
secure  the  crown  of  Judah,  2  Sam.  2. 

27.  Bethel  is  not  the  well-known  town  in  the  hills  of  Ephraim,  but 
227 


30:28  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


them  which  were  in  Ramoth  of  the  South,  and  to 

28.  them  which  were  in  Jattir;  and  to  them  which  were 
in  Aroer,  and  to  them  which  were  in  Siphmoth,  and 

29.  to  them  which  were  in  Eshtemoa;  and  to  them  which 
were  in  Racal,  and  to  them  which  were  in  the  cities  of 
the  Jerahmeehtes,  and  to  them  which  were  in  the  cities 

30.  of  the  Kenites;  and  to  them  which  were  in  Hormah, 
and  to  them  which  were  in  Cor-ashan,  and  to  them 

31.  which  were  in  Athach;  and  to  them  which  were  in 
Hebron,  and  to  all  the  places  where  David  himself 
and  his  men  were  wont  to  haunt. 

a  place  in  the  Judean  wilderness,  Josh.  15  :  30.  Ramoth  of  the  South, 
or  Ramoth-negeb  was  assigned  to  Simeon,  Josh.  19  :  8.  Jattir  was  a 
Judean  town  in  the  south,  Josh.  15  :  48. 

28.  Aroer,  Josh.  15  :  22,  was  in  the  vicinity  of  Beersheba.  Siph- 
moth is  not  named  elsewhere.  Eshtemoa  is  named  close  to  Jattir, 
Josh.  15  :  50;  21  :  14. 

29.  Racal  is  quite  unknown.  G.  has  Carmel  the  place  whence 
David  had  obtained  one  of  his  wives,  ch.  25.  Jerahmeelites  and 
Kenites  were  the  people  upon  whom  David  had  professed  to  make 
his  raids,  27  :  10,  Both  of  these  clans  were  closely  bound  to  the 
fortunes  of  Judah. 

30.  Hormah  was  famous  in  the  early  history,  Num.  14  :  45;  21  :i-3; 
according  to  Josh.  15  :  21,  30,  it  lay  "toward  the  border  of  Edom." 
Cor-ashan,  or  rightly  Bor-ashan  is  probably  an  error  for  Beersheba 
as  we  find  in  G.  The  omission  of  such  a  well-known  place  would, 
as  Smith  says,  be  inexplicable.  Athach  in  Josh.  15  :  42,  19  :  7, 
Athar.  The  place  is  quite  unknown.  Smith  would  substitute  Arad, 
cf.  Judg.  I  :  16. 

31.  Hebron  is  well  known  as  the  first  place  conquered  by  the 
tribe  of  Judah  and  its  allies,  Judg.  i  :  10,  and  as  the  first  capital 
of  the  kingdom  of  Judah,  where  David  reigned  for  seven  years,  2  Sam. 
2  : 1-4;  5  : 1-5.  And  to  all  the  places  we  must  either  understand 
even  to  all  the  places,  or  a7id  to  all  the  other  places.  The  southern  wild- 
erness of  Judah  had  been  David's  haunts  during  all  the  period, 
obviously  of  considerable  length,  while  Saul  was  trying  to  catch 
and  slay  him.  His  manner  of  life  we  can  infer  from  the  story  of 
Nabal,  ch.  25.  David  had  acted  as  the  protector  of  these  places, 
so  exposed  to  the  raids  of  the  Bedouin,  and  thus  had  prepared  the 
way  for  his  appointment  as  king  of  that  land.  ^ 

228 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL  31:4 


31.  Now  the  Philistines  fought  against  Israel:  and  the 
men  of  Israel  fled  from  before  the  Philistines,  and  fell 

2.  down  slain  in  mount  Gilboa.  And  the  Phihs tines  fol- 
lowed hard  upon  Saul  and  upon  his  sons;  and  the 
PhiHstines  slew  Jonathan,  and  Abinadab,  and  Malchi- 

3.  shua,  the  sons  of  Saul.  And  the  battle  went  sore 
against  Saul,  and  the  archers  overtook  him;  and  he 

4.  was  greatly  distressed  by  reason  of  the  archers.  Then 
said  Saul  to  his  armourbearer.  Draw  thy  sword,  and 
thrust  me  through  therewith;  lest  these  uncircumcised 
come  ^  and  thrust  me  through,^  and  abuse  me.  But 
his  armourbearer  would  not;  for  he  was  sore  afraid. 

1  Omit,  Chr. 

The  death  of  Saul  and  his  sons  and  the  rout  of  Israel,  ch.  31.  This 
story  is  the  first  to  be  incorporated  by  the  Chronicler,  i  Chron.  10. 
There  are  the  usual  variations  in  the  text.  The  section  is  a  continua- 
tion of  29  :  II.  The  time  is  the  night  after  Saul's  visit  to  the  witch 
of  En-dor,  28  :  3  ff. 

1.  Slain.  The  Hebrew  word  means  pierced^  but  here  with  the 
implication  of  a  fatal  thrust.  Mount  Gilboa.  Probably  the  Hebrews 
retired  upon  the  hills  where  they  were  pursued  by  the  relentless  foe, 
and  were  rapidly  falling  as  the  attack  was  pressed  home. 

2.  A  king  was  a  special  object  of  attack,  cf.  i  Kings  22  :  31.  It  is 
a  striking  fact  that  Saul's  three  sons  fell  before  the  foe  reached  the 
father.  Jonathan  we  know  was  a  brave  man,  and  his  brothers 
seem  to  have  been  like  him. 

3.  Archers.  The  Hebrew  has,  shooters,  men  with  the  bow,  the  last 
words  bemg  apparently  an  explanatory  gloss.  Overtook  gives  a  wrong 
idea,  for  Saul  was  beset  by  archers.  The  word  is  literally  found,  and 
the  meaning  is  that  the  archers  found  Saul  with  their  arrows.  It  is 
like  our  military  expression,  "the  artillery  found  the  target."  Dis- 
tressed is  wrong,  the  word  is  really  trembled.  It  is  better  to  follow 
G.  and  read,  he  was  badly  wounded  by  the  archers,  for  then  we  have  a 
suitable  setting  for  his  request  that  his  armorbearer  slay  him.  Saul 
was  hurt  so  that  further  flight  was  impossible. 

4.  And  thrust  me  through  must  be  omitted;  otherwise  there  would 
be  no  possibility  of  abuse  which  refers  to  various  forms  of  mutilation, 
{cf.  Judg.  I  :  6),  or  mockery  of  a  helpless  captive.    Afraid  refers  to 

229 


31:5  THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


5.  Therefore  Saul  took  his  sword,  and  fell  upon  it.  And 
when  his  armourbearer  saw  that  Saul  was  dead,  he 

6.  hkewise  fell  upon  his  sword,  and  died  with  him.  So 
Saul  died,  and  his  three  sons,  and  his  armourbearer, 

7.  and  all  his  men,  that  same  day  together.  And  when 
the  men  of  Israel  that  were  on  the  other  side  of  the 
valley,  and  they  that  were  beyond  Jordan,  saw  that 
the  men  of  Israel  fled,  and  that  Saul  and  his  sons  were 
dead,  they  forsook  the  cities,  and  fled;  and  the  PhiUs- 
tines  came  and  dwelt  in  them. 

8.  And  it  came  to  pass  on  the  morrow,  when  the  PhiHs- 
tines  came  to  strip  the  slain,  that  they  found  Saul 

9.  and  his  three  ^  sons  fallen  in  mount  Gilboa.  ^  And 
they  cut  off  his  head,  and  stripped  off  his  armour,^  and 

1  Omit,  Cbr.  ^  Chr.  and  they  stripped  him  and  took  his  head  and  his  armor. 

the  awe  inspired  by  a  king.  The  squire  dare  not  slay  the  Lord's 
anointed,  even  at  his  request.  The  ancient  writers  doubted  the 
possibility  of  Saul's  salvation  because  he  committed  suicide,  a  phe- 
nomenon rarely  mentioned  in  the  Bible.  According  to  another 
version  of  Saul's  death,  be  was  slain  at  his  request  by  an  Amalekite, 
2  Sam.  I  :  9. 

6.  For  his  armorbearer  Chronicles  has  all  his  house.  And  all  his 
men  is  lacking  in  Chron.,  and  may  be  spared,  for  the  Philistines 
could  not  get  the  whole  army.  The  main  point  is  that  Saul's  family 
was  practically  wiped  out  in  one  day,  and  thus  the  way  was  prepared 
for  David. 

7.  It  is  better  to  follow  the  simple  text  of  Chron.:  And  all  the  men 
of  Israel  who  were  in  the  valley  saw  that  the  men  of  Israel  fled  and  that 
Saul,  etc.  The  Israelities  across  the  Jordan  were  not  affected  by  the 
disaster;  probably  the  fugitives  fled  to  the  east  of  the  Jordan,  for 
there  Abner  set  up  the  kingdom  of  Esh-baal,  2  Sam.  2  : 8  ff .  The 
valley  was  either  the  plain  of  Esdraelon  or  the  valley  of  the  Jordan, 
probably  the  former  as  it  was  close  to  the  scene  of  the  disastrous 
battle. 

8.  On  the  morrow.  The  battle  had  lasted  till  night.  Strip  the 
slain.  The  victors  carry  off  as  much  plunder  as  possible,  chiefly 
weapons  and  clothing. 

9.  The  head  was  a  much  prized  trophy,  cf.  17  :  54.    Sent  implies 

230 


THE  FIRST  BOOK  OF  SAMUEL 


sent  into  the  land  of  the  PhiUstines  round  about,  to 
carry  the  tidings  unto  the  house  of  their  idols,  and  to 

10.  the  people.  And  they  put  his  armour  in  the  house  of 
the  Ashtaroth:  ^  and   they  fastened  his  body  to  the 

11.  wall  of  Beth-shan.  And  when  the  inhabitants  of 
Jabesh-gilead  heard  ^  concerning  him  ^  that  which  the 

12.  PhiUstines  had  done  to  Saul,  All  the  vahant  men 
arose,^  and  went  all  night,^  and  took  the  body  of  Saul 
and  the  bodies  of  his  sons  ^  from  the  wall  of  Beth- 
shan;  ^  and  they  came  to  Jabesh,  and  burnt  them 

13.  there.  And  they  took  their  bones,  and  buried  them 
under  the  tamarisk  tree  in  Jabesh,  and  fasted  seven 
days. 

1  Chr.,  their  god.  2  Omit  G.,  Chr.  3  Omit,  Chr.  *  Omit,  Chr. 

head  and  armour  as  its  object.  Probably  the  meaning  is  that  the 
victors  sent  messengers  to  carry  the  news  to  their  idols,  for  with 
Chr.  it  is  better  to  omit  house. 

10.  Ashtaroth  refers  to  the  Phoenician  goddess  Ashtoreth  who  was 
worshipped  as  Askkelon.  For  fastened  to  we  should  probably  read 
with  Lagarde  exposed  on.  Beth-shan  was  at  the  junction  of  the 
valleys  of  Jezreel  and  the  Jordan.  This  city  must  have  been  one  of 
those  vacated  by  the  fleeing  Israelites,  v.  7. 

1 1  ff .  Jabesh-gilead  was  the  city  Saul  had  saved  from  the  Ammon- 
ites, c.  II.  These  people  did  not  lack  gratitude.  And  btimt  them 
there  is  omitted  by  Chr.,  probably  because  the  act  was  distaste- 
ful to  him.  Fasted  was  a  common  mark  of  respect  to  the  dead. 
Chronicles  adds  a  passage  explaining  Saul's  death  as  due  to  his  dis- 
obedience and  to  his  consulting  the  witch  and  declaring  that  the 
kingdom  fell  to  David,  i  Chr.  lo:  13  f. 


231 


INDEX 


I.  Names  and  Subjects 


Abiathar,  34,  182 
Abner,  207 
Achish,  8 
Adullam,  177,  183 
Aijalon,  116 
Anointing,  131 
Apparel,  147 
Arabah,  188 
Ark,  4if.,  45,  59 
Azekah,  139 

Barrenness,  17 

Bel  and  the  Dragon,  50 

Belial,  20 

Beth-shan,  231 

Bezek,  9 if. 

Blood,  117 

Bread,  174 

Budde,  35,  78,  118,  166,  192 

Caleb,  195 
Cheyne,  24,  139 

Dagon,  49f. 
David,  3,  9ff.,  136 
Deputy,  82,  102 
Doeg,  175,  180 
Dowry,  157 
Driver,  31 
Duplicates,  11 

Eben-ezer,  40 

Eli,  3,  IS,  39 
Elkanah,  16 

En-dor,  214 
En-gedi,  189 


Ephah,  142 
Ephes-dammim,  i39f. 
Ephod,  30,  33,  108,  113 

Field,  159 

Gibeah,  72 
Goliath,  i37ff. 

Hachilah,  187 
Hannah,  22f. 
Hebron,  228 

Inebriety,  20 
Ishbaal,  122 
Ishtar,  61 

Jabesh-gilead,  89 
Jastrow,  21,  24,  30  v' 
Jeconiah,  59 
Jephthah,  19 
Jonathan,  4,  7,  10 
Josephus,  66,  122 

Keilah,  183 

Meholah,  155 
Melancholia,  135 
Mice,  47f. 
Mishpat,  28 
Mizpah,  61 
Moore,  20 

Naked,  163 
Nakon,  188,  204 
Nationalism,  5 


233 


INDEX 


Nazarite,  19 
Nowack,  101 

Paran,  194 
Philistines,  2 

Ramah,  16 
Restitution,  95 
Rock,  25 

Samuel,  3,  22,  60,  66,  76 

Samson,  19 

Saul,  3f.,  84 

Seahs,  198 

Seer,  73f. 

Shaaraim,  150 

Shekel,  74 

Sheol,  2i5f. 

Shiloh,  i5f. 

Sign,  55,  8of.,  83,  no 

Sleep,  206 

Smith,  H.  P.,  26,  S3,  4©,  78,  i73, 

179 
Smith,  W.  R.,  91 
Socoh,  139 
Song  of  Hannah,  24f. 


Spirits,  135,  137 
Spiritualism,  218 
Storm,  27,  63,  99 

Telaim,  24 
Teraphim,  161 
Texts  and  versions,  12 
Thummim,  120 
Tithe,  70 
Tribism,  5 

Urim,  120 

Vow,  19 

Wadi,  223 
Water  libation,  62 
Wellhausen,  17,  64,  108,  226 

Yadh,  46 
Youth,  139 

Zadok,  34 
Ziklag,  210 
Ziph,  186,  195 
Zuph,  16 


Genesis 

1:2 100 

2:21 206 

4:6 202 

25:25 134 

31:52 58 

32:26 20 

35:i9f 81 

Exodus 

2:23 52 

17:11 63 

17:16 123 

23:18 29 

34:20 121 

Leviticus 

17:13^ 117 

24:8 175 


II.  Scripture  Passages 
PAGE    Numbers 


PAGE 

2i:8ff 54 

34:6 64 

Deuteronomy 

16:9 66 

I7:i4ff 68 

19:10 159 

23:11 170 


Judges 
1:29.. 
3:24.. 
6:15.. 
6:36flf. 

9 

9:22. . 
9:24.. 


..  211 

.  .  190 
78,  87 

. .  119 

. .  66 

•  •  93 

.  .  186 


234 


INDEX 


Judges 

13:5- • 

13:6,8, 

13:22. 

14:3- • 
14:8.  . 
19:29. 
20. . . . 


PAGE 

•  19 

•  32 
.  99 
.  109 

•  115 
.  91 
.  62 


Ruth 
4:21!. 


Joshua 
1-12. 
7:24.  . 

24 


178 


5 
181 

94 


2  Samuel 

2:1-4 206,  227 

6:6f 59,  188 

10:4 190 

11:27 203 

15:1 69 

16:9 205 

18:19 44 

21:7-9 194 

21:19 i37f 

24 31 

24:17 221 


I  Kings 
1:41.. 
2:26f . . 

3 

6:23flf. 
ii:3of.  . 

13:1  •• 
17:1... 
19:225. 

21 

22:31.  . 


•34, 


2  Kings 

57- •• 

23:9  ••• 

25:7... 


75 
182 

37 

41 

129 

32 
39 

13s 
70 

229 


208 

35 
90 


I  Chronicles 
2:13-15.  .  . 

io:i3f 

21 


PAGE 
■     133 

•  231 

•  32 


Ezra 
7:1-5 


72 


Nehemiah 

7:3 92 

9:1 44 

11:32 173 


Esther 
8:17. 


Job 

1 :6 .  .  .  . 
i:i6ff.. 
1:17... 

2:9 

3:13-19 

Psalms 

29 

69:28.  .  . 
113:7.  .  . 
132 


Proverbs 
26:1 .  .  . . 


Ecclesiastes 
5:4 


Isaiah 

2:6.. 

20:2.  . 


Jeremiah 
i:7f.... 
6:4.... 

15:9- ••• 
21:9, 


196 


215 

104 
92 
38 

216 


•63,  99 
.  .  201 
•  •  27 
..     60 


99 


19 


S3 
163 


132 

104 

26 

219 


23:14 186 


235 


INDEX 


Lamentations  page 

4:5 27 

Ezekiel 

46:18 69 

Joel 
2:17 100 

Amos 
5:2ifF 127 

Zephaniah 
1:9 49 


Matthew 

4:1 

9:2ff... 


Luke 
i:46ff. 

7:39-  . 
i6:i9ff. 

Acts 
2:2!. . 
9:25.. 


PAGE 
.  32 
.    128 


25 

77 
25 


82 
160 


I  Corinthians 

11:21 20,  202 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


236 


DATE  DUE 


HIGHSMITH      #  45220 


BS491.B58  9 

A  commentary  on  the  First  book  of 

Princeton  Theological  Semlnary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00006  4107 


>^>^^^>%**^^^>*t*►*>^>*>*>*►>>***»H^i^**^^^ 


